Maybe they'll contract out a bunch of local young cuties to wink and shake their tushies at the pilots. With the clean breakers, stiff hair and no more back problems, some of these fellas may even have a shot at a few of 'em.

There are plenty of ways for J.O. to improve morale without silly things like pay, benefits, schedules and work rules.

As long as the young dudes can look cool, fly shiny jets and get hot chicks, J.O. can stay in fat city, with his multiple homes, dozens of motorcycles and private jets. He'll get to continue hobnobbing with others who got their wealth scamming clueless employees out of a respectable work life.

Sounds, "win-win" to me.

I don’t know if it’s all about employee retention. Look at what JO’s miss management has led to as far as increasing cost and decreasing revenue. Just to name the big hitters, you have attrition which has been out of control at Mesa for years and leads to an increase in training cost, but this alone isn’t enough to bring JO to the table. How do I know that this isn't enough? Think about it; Mesa's attrition has been around 50% during a period when everyone started to have problems filling classes (Mesa included) and this didn't bring him to the table. So why, when his attrition is somewhat slowed due to today's climate and he is now able to fill classes because no one else is hiring, is he now willing to negotiate over this small problem. Now add to it the back pay to UAL for poor performance and missing contractual numbers plus the lack of performance bonuses which added all together has probably cost Mesa well over $150M+ in the last 3 years alone and let’s not forget about the $57M ($80M) Go!/Hawaiian fiasco. You can see that it's an accumulation of errors that have lead up to the straw that may have broken the camel’s back.

Up until DAL cancelled their contract (“the straw”) Orenstein was probably going to fight his pilot group for years in order to get a "cost neutral" TA but now that he’s seen firsthand what his pilots are capable of when they all work together in the company's favor as compared to when they work together against………..what am I talking about? The pilots on the freedom ticket have been fighting to improve performance in an attempt to retain their jobs/flying. JO has probably noticed the improved numbers and finally realized that if he gives his pilots an industry average to better contract they’ll fight companywide thus saving him tens of millions of dollars each year in contractual bonuses and back pay, even after his labor groups pay role increase $10-15M+. Not to mention the possibility of retaining current flying in the future.

Mesa pilots……………….does this hold water? Or is JO not that smart?

Maybe the new contract will include a complimentary bottle of lube for all new hires... that may be helpful. Face it... things probably won't get significantly better for any of us. Best of luck though...

Taking it back!, ..... not

What do you expect from a company that is O.K with having their pilots sleep like homeless in their airplanes, I thought that was over with but I just heard that it still goes on today for those in PHX. Good luck though.....

How about a little support instead of constantly bad mouthing Mesa?

We have been working under this POS contract for 5 years. We finally get a chance to get what we deserve and all you guys continue to beat us down. How do you think it makes us feel to constantly hear pilots bad mouth us to our face?

I know what I want in my new contract and I won't stop fighting until I get it ALL. We all know Mesa sucks. We all know they treat their employees like dog crap. I know, I work here. That doesn't mean I'm not professional, respectful, and I don't support EVERY SINGLE airline pilot out there, except for Go Jet and Freedom A'listers of course.

Come on guys, how a little bit more support.

Whining about being picked on will not garner more support

So when will we know what is in it?

I understand you being upset with everybody bad mouthing Mesa.... but you need to understand... it isn't about your POS contract, it's about your POS company and it's CEO. As long as the company is a POS, so will your contract be.

The best advice... especially to any of the people who read these boards hoping to one day be an airline pilot, is do not ever, under any circumstances work for a company like Mesa. It isn't always about who is hiring with the lowest times, or pays the best.... there are a bunch of things newbies, and oldies, need to consider. Upgrade time, base location, fleet size, fleet types, company size, retirement programs, 401k & matching, financials of the company (unless you want to go from one bankruptcy to another) history of company/employee relations, training requirments, commutability, scheduling, average reserve times, contractual protections, safety record, maintenance history, employee assistance programs, medical benefits, life insurance programs, travel benefits, credit union size, uniform payments, maximum scheduled duty day... and the whole list just goes on and on.

If you take the time to look into a few of these types of issues, other than who will hire me with 250TT/50ME you will quickly see that there are more than a few companies you do not want to work for... you'd be happier remaining a CFI for a few extra months, building more time, and landing a job at a decent carrier.

Remember to chose very wisely. The old days of working a year or two at a regional and then going to a major are long gone. Yes, it does still happen, but nowhere even close to how it was. So, unless you want to constantly be changing airlines and being bottom on the seniority lists..... pick and chose carefully.
The job of regional airline pilot has become a career position for most. Unfortunately, the salaries and working conditions have not yet adapted to this reality.... Many managements are just now comming to realize that people are not moving on the way they used to.... they are seeing 20 year pilots more and more, and they know that their current business models will not support this as the industry continues without drastic change and restructuring...

At least one large regional even went so far as to create an office to help pilots wishing to leave. The company would gather all your flight times, prepare new logbooks for you, help with resumes, filling out applications, writing letters, and even provided official recommendations...

I truly hope that the Mesa pilots have scored a good TA. I hope that Mesa management's intentions are honorable but I sincerely doubt it. When a TA is brought up this quickly with no contest...it seems that something isn't right. I fear that a good CBA will only be a temporary situation at best. (You can never trust JO...even with his hands tied.)

With MAG's stock price hovering around the $0.50 level, I fully expect to see Mesa file bankruptcy after the Date of Signing. Then Mesa will do what all the other airlines have done. Slash the contract into little bitty pieces and destroy the little improvements that the pilots have gained. With DAL cancelling the CRJ900 flying out of JFK, I feel this will be the straw that breaks the camels back.

Mark my words....if you follow the money you'll always know how Mesa and JO will think. This is their plan......just watch. You'll see.....I guarantee it.

My .02 (hoping I'm wrong)

Former Mesa Guy
1900 MSY/RDG
CRJ PHL/DEN/PHX/ORD
'96-06