Originally Posted by rickair7777

Not sure what your point is. Are you in favor of a union, or opposed, or not even talking about that all?

SKW is not going to win a lawsuit based on confusion as to how the RLA applies to non-union airlines. RLA amends certain federal labor laws that apply to unionized workforces.

An informal CBA (like SAPA has) actually has some slight advantages. Unlike a union CBA, it cannot give away individual rights to protection under routine labor law (like union CBAs which for example can allow less-than-minimum wage for duty time, and limit employee lawsuits). But it's still an enforceable legal contract like any other business agreement between various parties.

Originally Posted by rickair7777

Not sure what your point is. Are you in favor of a union, or opposed, or not even talking about that all?

SKW is not going to win a lawsuit based on confusion as to how the RLA applies to non-union airlines. RLA amends certain federal labor laws that apply to unionized workforces.

An informal CBA (like SAPA has) actually has some slight advantages. Unlike a union CBA, it cannot give away individual rights to protection under routine labor law (like union CBAs which for example can allow less-than-minimum wage for duty time, and limit employee lawsuits). But it's still an enforceable legal contract like any other business agreement between various parties.

Originally Posted by FaceBiter

Yes, with the exception of reserve and upgrades. At least for a regional, which isn't saying that much.

Originally Posted by Beech90

How long is one on reserve? Say a west coast base like Denver.

Originally Posted by saxman66

Although the number of reserves fluctuates from month to month, the junior lineholder in DEN is about a Jan. 2014 hire. So 6-7 months? For October there are 221 FO's in DEN and only 11 of them are on reserve. Of course the list I'm looking at may have added some to the bottom since the last bid.

Originally Posted by Nevets

Actually, I don't think it's good at all! It's subjective, open to interpretation, not transparent, no accountability, and not enforceable. You may have a couple things better (thanks to pilot unions), but this is definitely NOT one of them.

Here is what we have:


A. Commuter Policy

1. A pilot is responsible for reporting for assignments in a timely manner. These
provisions are not intended to relieve a pilot of his responsibility.

2. The Commuter Policy will not be limited to pilots who commute by air and will also
apply to those pilots who commute by ground transportation (e.g., rail, car, bus,
etc.).

3. A pilot will be eligible to use this policy from any destination in North America as
long as the requirements of the Commuter Policy are met. The policy will apply to
flights from other destinations, provided he selects two (2) flights as provided in
paragraph 4.d.(2), below.

4. Commuter Policy Procedures
a. This policy covers a pilot who is:
(1) a regular pilot (lineholder) traveling to a flight assignment,
(2) a reserve as provided in paragraph A.8., below,
(3) an instructor pilot traveling to a training event, or
(4) a pilot traveling to a training event, provided he selects two (2)
flights as provided in paragraph 4.d.(2), below.
b. Documentation
(1) Upon request, pilots will be responsible for providing relevant
documentation to the Company to establish their compliance
with this policy. For example, documentation such as available
seat information from a pass travel website or seat map
information from an airline reservation website will be sufficient.
(2) A pilot commuting by means of transportation other than air must
provide reasonable evidence of the reason for failure to report.
c. For the purpose of paragraph A., a “flight” refers to a single leg or multiple
legs used by a pilot to travel to his duty location. For a multiple leg
commute, each leg is subject to the available seating requirements in
paragraph d., below, and must have reasonable connection times.
d. A pilot commuting by air must choose one of the following:
(1) One (1) flight to the airport at which his assignment originates
with a seat available for sale to the public or an available
jumpseat not more than thirty-six (36) hours but not less than
twenty-four (24) hours in advance of the scheduled departure
time for the flight he expects to use to commute to work (his
“commuting flight”).
(2) Two (2) flights to the airport at which his assignment originates
with a seat available for sale to the public or an available
jumpseat within thirty-six (36) hours in advance of the scheduled
departure time for the flight he expects to use to commute to
work (his “commuting flight”).
e. The commuting flight must be scheduled to arrive at least fifteen (15)
minutes before his assigned report time or beginning of his reserve on-
call period. However, if customs clearance is required the flight must be
scheduled to arrive at least sixty (60) minutes before the pilot’s assigned
report time or beginning of his reserve on-call period.
f. A commuting pilot must comply with each carrier’s pass travel and/or
jumpseat policy.
g. If a pilot anticipates he will not arrive at his domicile in sufficient time to
report for his assignment, he will notify crew scheduling as soon as
possible. The pilot must specifically inform the crew scheduler that he is
invoking the commuter policy. The pilot will coordinate his return to duty with crew scheduling as provided in paragraph 6., below. The pilot will
inform crew scheduling of material changes to his ETA at the assignment
location.
5. Effect of Commuting Failure
a. A pilot who has complied with these procedures but is unable to report for
his flight assignment at report time (regular pilot), or to position himself to
begin his reserve on-call period (reserve pilot), will not be subject to any
discipline or occurrence as a result of his inability to report or begin his
on-call period on time.
b. Flight Selection Requirements
A pilot will have the option of selecting one (1) flight or two (2) flights for
his commute. All such flights must meet the requirements of paragraph
4., above.
(1) A pilot has the option to select one (1) flight to commute,
however he will only be eligible to avoid discipline due to
commuting failure three (3) times in a rolling twelve (12) month
period using the one (1) flight rule. Such pilot will still be eligible
to select two (2) flights as provided in paragraph (2), below.
(2) If a pilot selects two (2) flights for his commute, there will be no
limit on the number of times he can invoke the commuter policy
to avoid discipline.
c. For the purposes of Contract 2007, ASA MOU 61 remains in full force
and effect with the limitations of paragraph 5.a., above.
6. Reassignment
a. If a pilot is unable to arrive in time for his trip, he will notify Crew
Scheduling as soon as practical, and state whether he is able to report to
his domicile. Crew Scheduling may deadhead the pilot from his current
location without pay or credit to rejoin his scheduled or rescheduled trip.
b. If the pilot is able to report to his domicile, Crew Scheduling may:
(1) deadhead the commuting pilot, without pay or credit, to join his
trip,
(2) place the commuting pilot on his trip when it transits his domicile,
(3) reschedule the commuting pilot for another trip in accordance
with Section 13 of Contract 2007 or Section 21 of Contract 2004,
as applicable,
(4) for a regular pilot, if Crew Scheduling is unable to reassign the
pilot under paragraphs b.(1)-b.(3), above, such pilot may, by
mutual agreement between the pilot and Crew Scheduling:

(a) An ASA pilot may, be placed on short-call reserve as
provided in Section 13.K. in Contract 2007, or
(b) An XJT pilot may be placed on a Rx day provided in
Section 21 of Contract 2004.
(5) for a reserve, when he reaches his domicile, he will be placed on
short-call reserve for the remainder of his original reserve
period(s).
7. Compensation
a. Regular Pilot
(1) A pilot who complies with this policy but does not report for his
assignment on time will not receive any pay or credit for any
flight assignment missed and will have his minimum monthly
guarantee adjusted in accordance with Contract 2007 Section 4
or Contract 2004 Section 3, as applicable. The missed portion of
the assignment will be treated as a voluntary schedule change.
In such case the minimum-day credit (DPM) will not be paid on
that day.
(2) A pilot will be eligible for pay and credit only for any portion of his
flight assignment that he actually flies or for which he is
rescheduled (not including any deadhead to join his originally
scheduled or rescheduled trip) after he has reported for duty
following his commuting failure.
(3) A regular pilot who is placed on reserve as provided in
paragraph 6.b.(4), above, will be paid the greater of the value of
a reserve day for each day he is on call or the value of any flight
assignments he receives.
b. Reserve Pilot
If crew scheduling releases the reserve pilot, the reserve pilot’s minimum
monthly guarantee will be adjusted in accordance with Contract 2007
Section 4 or Contract 2004 Section 3, as applicable, to reflect that the
reserve pilot was not available for reserve for that reserve on-call period.
If crew scheduling does not release the reserve pilot, his minimum
monthly guarantee will not be adjusted.
8. Applicability to Reserve Pilots
a. A short-call reserve pilot can use this policy to position himself in advance
of his on-call period.
b. A long-call reserve pilot can use this policy to position himself in advance
of an assignment if he meets the requirements of the policy. Otherwise,
the long-call reserve pilot can use this policy to position himself in
advance of his on-call period.