Pilot shortage equals low pay?
 

As I sit here and contemplate my career I get to read articles like this.

ALPA News Release

Bro. Two words. Shiny...jets.

10 Lowest-Paying Airlines
Estimated First-Year Salary as of July 20, 2014

Great Lakes
$14,616
Skywest Airlines
$20,064
GoJet Airlines
$20,504
Expressjet Airlines
$20,745
Trans States Airlines
$21,531
Silver Airways
$18,693
Mesa Airlines
$20,183
Republic/Shuttle/Chautauqua
$20,655
Atlantic Southeast Airlines
$20,907
PSA Airlines
$21,600

Spot-on article in my opinion. There is a pay shortage for jobs in which worker can barely afford Ramen noodles, and if the pay were to be raised, the shortage would be solved very quickly. Somewhat shocked that it came from ALPA, though.

Alpa needs to shut the regional guys up a bit, there is a risk in regional pilots figuring out alpa doesn't represent their interests at all. Tossing you a bone. But teamsters no better.

Truth of the matter is this. FAR TOO MUCH TIME IS BEING WASTED DOING NOTHING. If nothing is done now, then never. Where is the leadership?

One of the union reps for Eagle (an outgoing rep, I believe, summed up in a statement that the major airlines have become addicted to low wage regionals. Addicts will lie right to your face, because their addiction is stronger than any other process including morality and logic. I think that analogy fits well here. We all know what is required to attract pilots, pay and better working conditions.

It is infuriating, that ALPA doesn't release these statements somewhere they will be read, like in a major publication. Just publish the first yr pay figures AND 4 yr figures, training costs, and quotes about pilot shortage. Then simply say "Any wonder there is a shortage". But MOAK gets 500k/ yr, so I guess there's no money for effective PR.

I agree with that statement. When major airline pilots trade scope, they get bigger salaries. I would argue should regionals be reabsorbed into the parent airlines, salaries at the top would have to come down.

I'm not sure major airline pilots even care if scope ever comes back, whether we are talking scope in number of airplanes or scope in size of airplanes.

I find it hard to believe that any pilot at a major or legacy gives a damn about Regional FO pay.

Anything written by ALPA is pure propaganda.

This is a very true statement. I think the captains only slightly care and that is because they have to sit up front with us.