Not sure where you get off saying that... and I don't appreciate the personal attack.

I am in this and am on the side of guys should not pick up open time period. Open time means there is a need to be filled, a need necessary because people have been furloughed.

 

To defend a few people who may have been misunderstood, let me pose a question:

You are based in IAD, but commute from ORD
You are a line holder

Do you guys think it's wrong to drop a 20 hour 4 day trip out of IAD, and in that trips place, pick up a 20 hour 4 day trip out of ORD?

 

why would it be a problem your not doing the company a favor
even better try to pick it up minus a overnight or 2 to burn a reserve

 

HAHAHA

dont you work for gojet?
pretty sure that is because segment times are gone and replaced with actual scheduled times from the partner.

 

Did you miss the part where I said not to end up with more hours than your line had?

Time in the open time pot will be assigned to reserves. We can't even do straight pickups anymore nor would I condone it with people on the street. However, a swap swaps your trip, puts it in the pot and replaces it with something else. The required level of staffing is not affected by swaps unless you swap out a lower time trip for a greater time trip. Savvy?

 

1) if you're going to get min guarantee anyway - YES
2) if you're not getting guarantee anymore, and just trading one trip for another (and not getting paid more than straight time) then you're trip trading, not picking up open-time - NO

The original poster wrote: I read that to say either:
1) I have a 75 hour min guarantee and a 75 hour awarded line. I swap a 20 hour trip for a 15 hour trip that puts me @ 70 hours. I pick up a trip out of open-time to get me back to 75 hours. I'm going to get 75 hours of pay anyway, it's my guarantee.
2) I have a 75 hour min guarantee and a 85 hour awarded line. I swap a 20 hour trip for a 15 hour trip that puts me @ 80 hours. I pick up a trip out of open-time to get me back to 85 hours, my awarded line value.

Neither of these are ok in my book if guys are on furlough.

If this is not the situation being presented, my apologies.

 

Only thing is if you do a straight drop on a trip and it brings you below your guarantee your guarantee is reduced. For example, you have a 80 hour line and drop a trip valued at 12 hours. Your guarantee would be reduced to 68 hours.

Of course good luck doing that -- "denied insufficient reserve coverage."

 

So you drop a trip, bringing you below guarantee, and then think you can pick up open time later at some point to 'make yourself whole'?

This is picking up open-time with guys on furlough, plain and simple, to me.

You either drop one trip and pick up another in one transaction (a trip trade), or you drop the trip, let it get flown by a reserve, and take the pay hit - that's why you "dropped" the trip, you decided you'd rather not fly it and take the pay hit associated with your decision.

And, the best part, why you can't do it - 'insufficient reserve coverage'? That's b/c you're not properly staffed! Why? B/c you have . . . guys on furlough!

I guess you can call me a 'strict constructionist'. When guys are on furlough, you fly your awarded line and don't deviate, keeping the onus on the company if things don't work out, rather than on you. The company will almost always build something more inefficiently that you could - and that's the point. When guys are on furlough, you fly the way the company wants you to. They made the decision to furlough, so they decided that they were overstaffed, and they don't need your help fixing their staffing model.

 

Go ahead and flame me if you want, but these arguments against someone wanting to bring their pay back up to what they originally had without going over is silly and stupid. They are not helping the company or hurting furloughees either way.

In my career with the airlines I have NEVER picked up open time, only dropped what I can't handle with my other employers schedule. However, I am not going to fault someone - most importantly an FO who is making 30-ish dollars an hour for trying to make his pay whole while adjusting his schedule to fit his needs, IF he/she is even able to. Kudos to them for even being able to.

I am willing to bet that those who comment negatively against others who even suggest such a thing are two-timers and would do it with a slight chuckle if the time came to where the option afforded them.

Whatever...

 

If you think about it, picking up open time (as a line holder) keeps reserve people at home. You're crazy if you think management doesn't look at reserve utilization when deciding to furlough, and if so, how many.

I made it just fine on F/O pay. It wasn't easy and I had to watch every penny, but if you live within your means its very doable.

I haven't picked up open time since we furloughed the original 64. It's a mixture of that its wrong and the fact that I value my days off. I'm not looking for a ribbon, or a pat on the back; just stating that it doesn't seem like the right thing to do.