let me just quote myself and try this again, since apparently i didn't write it well enough. you guys missed my point. see where i said "...so they could outsource the work to someone else" ? that was my point. i wasn't puffing my chest and saying that skywest has never furloughed and will never furlough. i was saying that mainline airlines (like united) are the ones that furlough people and outsource the work to regionals.

one correction that i see above, i should have said "more" not "less".

anyway, yes, it's obvious that we (skywest) are at the mercy of our mainline partners, but it's also true that mainline guys get screwed over way more than we do. that was my point.

 

I wouldn't be so confident that they would throw the pilots under the bus if circumstances made it feasible.

Sounds familiar.

I'm surprised they offered it to begin with seeing that they were not willing to offer that to some other work group recently.

There used to be a time when all airlines furloughed during the slow season. Airlines, in general, now operate with razor thin staffing instead. And yes, airline managements have also created jobs/careers at regionals at the expense of the major airline pilot. That's to say, they found another way to create a B scale. Anyways, I think the point was that any regional will always be someone's *****.

 

You and I both know that our relationship with Mgmnt can quickly erode with a change at the helm. Yes it won’t happen overnight but little by little things can and will change. Since this pilot group buys into almost everything Mgmnt sales all they need is a great salesmen to step into control and one day they’ll wake up and find out they just bought the second coming of “Blue Skies.”

Jerry's been at SKW for over 36 years, look to the past and you'll see many airlines that had solid labor relations until the old guy retired, CAL comes to mind with Robert Six. Yes that's an extreme but history isn't written using foresight.

 

Yes, of course it can change with a change at the helm. I was talking about the current regime as well.

 

This airline has known nothing but good times so who knows what Mgmnt will do if and when we're in a downward spiral.

 

I'm sorry to hear about this... My best wishes to those hard workers SkyWest is loosing in SLC. Although I've never had to deal with it before (only been with the airlines for 2 years in April), I can't imagine it would be easy ... especially in this economy.

I hope for the best for the future of SkyWest's employees and hopefully you guys will be able to get a union to protect yourselves.

 

Compare the hourly rates....not sure how much different they are. Just curious.

 

That was a different situation...the ASA SLC pilots did not lose their job, just their domicile. SKW gave them some benefits, but pilots are on a global seniority list, while ground stations are managed locally with locality-specific pay scales.

Also you are being a bit hypocritical...what if the tables were turned and ASA hired outside pilots and inserted them into ASA ALPA's list at a higher seniority or longevity. We both know how THAT would go over

 

Well, I didn't even know that ASA SLC pilots lost their domicile. What benefits this SKW "give" them that was not part of their contract already? Regardless of local or global seniority list, my point still stands that I'm surprised there was any longevity offered, even not considering the recent past.

As for your assumption about ASA hiring outside pilots, considering that they used up negotiating capital to put language in their contract that specifies that if SKW aircraft are transfered over to ASA, that SKW pilots would come over with some sort of seniority, AND considering that the ASA MEC is a supporter of the Fee For Departure Task Force and their Chairman is one of the three MEC Chairman spearheading the Fee For Departure Task Force which would allow pilots to go over with their aircraft with longevity and seniority to the airline that recieves those airplanes (including ASA if ASA would recieve any other airline's airplanes), I would say that you are wrong.

I don't see the hypocrisy, sorry.

 

It is not outsourcing jobs to themselves...it is called ...taking them back.