FIT59 , 04-21-2020 12:44 PM
Gets Weekends Off
Corrections from my memory, having received a furlough letter, but was fortunate to not get furloughed.
December 13, 2007, age 65 law changes; over 60 FE's begin bidding ANC 747 vacancies to get their seat back, beginning a bump (and eventual flush). May 2008, after a failed bid to take over the domestic flying for DHL, UPS announces the parking of all remaining DC-8's (approximately 45 airframes). Shortly after, UPS tells the union that 300 pilots will need to be furloughed. After discussions between the IPA and UPS, a target amount of financial savings is negotiated to prevent furloughs (a goal post created). The VJPP MOU was created with many different methods to reach the above mentioned goal post of savings. These included reduced guarantee lines, job sharing lines, leaves of absence, and sick bank give backs. Nearly all IPA crew members contributed to this MOU and just as the goal was met, the company instructed the union to give more, moving the goal posts further. There simply was no more to give and the company broke their word and sent out 170 furlough letters. A few weeks later, they sent out an additional 10 letters, totaling 180. Of that, 109 were furloughed. After the Flight 6 tragedy, UPS stopped furloughing. Perhaps they no longer needed to furlough, or perhaps they grew a conscience. The company was wildly profitable over this period of time, and they certainly could have absorbed the 109, but chose a different path. By the way, many of those furloughed had received a one way move package to the ANC domicile, and were stranded up there, unemployed. It was a difficult time, and it lasted what seemed like forever. The IPA had our brothers and sisters back; I heard we only had 18 crew members violate the no open time ban during the furlough (something that is written into our CBA).