Sorry to revive an old thread, but I was thinking about this today and found the discussion. Has a union ever tried to negotiate this? I ran some simple numbers and it seems like a flat pay structure would actually be cheaper from the airline's standpoint.

 

And welcome to the GOB network. Tallflyer is right; this is a terrible idea.

 

Reading this thread is a good reminder, that until things change, it is probably a good idea to hold off on starting a family until upgrade or getting that coveted job at a major. I don't have sympathy for those that know the wages/the cost of student loans, yet pop out babies anyway when they can't nessecarily handle/afford them financially. It sucks that you have to play it that way but it is what it is. It gets quite old hearing FOs complain about being on food stamps etc. I know the pay is criminal but people still come and work for these wages anyway. You can wish for change til your blue in the face but until people stop coming to work for the low wages you simply have to be financially responsible and hold off on that family until your budget shows you can afford it.

 

This would work, except Endeavor and PSA would demand to work for less

 

I think a lot of pilots are over paid, which plays a part in the low wages at the bottom of the seniority list. You have to wonder whether "the Man" is actually ALPA, and not the management groups we're so frequently urged to vilify.

 

NEW PAY SYSTEM: Company stops paying us a salary. We fly for tips ONLY

Heres the math:

50 seat airplane averaging 40 occupied seats per leg, 5 legs per day. Thats 200 passengers carried per day. We assume that the portion of the total ticked price the passenger pays for being on the "regional portion" of their trip is $50. Thats 200 X $50. Total revenue per crew per day=$10,000 Now add a "flight crew tip" surcharge of 15-18% you get $1500-$1800 per flight crew per day to be split between crew. Lets say the FA gets $300 per day and pilots get $600 each. Work a 15 day month, each pilot would make $9000 and FAs would make $4500. Thats a lot more than most make now in any seat. The company would save on not paying us a salary.

It's far fetched but interesting nonetheless.

 

I started truck driving this year. I'll be in a house I'm building with my dad (cost efficient) and hopefully own my own plane to buzz around in whenever I please and be debt free before I'm 30.

No way in Hades I'd be able to do that if I hadn't abruptly halted the airline route. Truck driving isn't bad and owning my own plane will definitely ease the pain of not having that airline job. It just wasn't meant to be. I can afford the training or the low pay; not both. Maybe someday I can get into a King Air or something. CFI'ing sounds like a lot of fun as well for my free time.

Sometimes you gotta let it go. This whole thread is pretty good evidence of that for me. Seems like after someone goes to college for four plus years and pays 30-60-80K for flight training and multiple years of experience building, a thread like this shouldn't even exist.

Good luck, mates. I really hope you guys get something going soon. Maybe the pool will dry up eventually and something will change. I'm rooting for you.

-M

 

You mention possibly getting into a King Air someday. Why not just do that now? Outside of the twisted world of regional airlines, pilot pay doesn't seem to be that much of a problem. One can make a decent wage at any number of 135/91k operators, certainly more than a truck driver.

 

How about not taking a job where you aren't content with the compensation package.

 

O, I understand what you mean. At the moment I'm most interested in paying off the little debt I have and building the home. After that, I may go the 135/91 route. I have a few friends in the know at a few places. I'm just not in a huge rush anymore. I sure wouldn't mind trading the gear shift for a throttle in 3-5 years.