You're right, and the b slap could come to us, or any legacy, or any other regional, really at any time and with no warning.

 

Well since UAL can't figure out their head from their a$$ I'm sure they'll call Mesa......

 

I didn't think they were PRIA reportable either. I thought only the final type ride was a PRIA event. We were told on Friday by one of the senior instructors that all of the stuff I listed is a PRIA event, even if you pass on the second try. I hope he's wrong.

 

You know, you're absolutely right. If Clarence isn't happy with the kinds of questions he's getting asked in airline interviews, he should tell the interviewer what he thinks. The interviewer will be impressed with his initiative and independence.

In ground school, if he doesn't like the airline's SOP, or how things are being taught, or doesn't feel that he has to know something, he should definitely make that very clear to the instructors and his classmates.

(sarcasm off)

I'm not saying you have to come to ground school already having memorized all the material (except for the EP&L test, which, yes, you do have to memorize, number for number and word for word.) What I'm saying is: Airline ground school (at least, this one) assumes a pretty solid knowledge base. They're not going to sit there and teach you what the 1,2,3 rule means. They're not going to explain to you the difference between a low-pressure and a high-pressure turbine. It's just assumed that you know it.

That is all.

 

It's a firehose, drink deeply, and don't let the floor get wet.

 

Not true. But that is not my point at all. My only point is that we don't have things randomly re-interpreted, changed, added, omitted, or subjectively enforced. We have a mechanism for a neutral third party to decide disputes when that happens. Anyway, pilots unions are much more than about a contract.

 

Sure, many people never have to grieve anything. But that doesn't mean nothing ever get grieved. And the grievance process I'm speaking of is one that uses a neutral third party to decide. Skywest doesn't have that. Again, my point wasn't about that. I was talking about unilateral re-interpretation, omission, addition, etc of policies without any recourse (because there is no legally binding contract). Point being, yeah maybe technically they have never had a concession to vote on. But that doesn't mean that things haven't been eroded. That was my point. By the way, I've had friends tell me they have tried to get things fixed directly but were denied. How many times does that happen? No one will ever know because there isn't an entity to keep track of these issues and make sure the company is abiding by their end of the deal and not just subjectively (either by accident or on purpose) dealing with these types of issues.



Just because you have a union doesn't automatically mean that you get hell in a hand basket. It would still consist of the same pilot group and the same pilot leadership and the same management personnel. That's the misconception, the relationship doesn't have to be adversarial. But it does take the relationship to a more professional level. There is a reason why all the top executives have their own employment contracts.

And yes, you are one CEO away from having the next JO take over. That can happen regardless of unions though. But you cannot honestly say that the likes of MESA, RAH, TSA, XJT would've been better off without a union. Again, that is also not to say that things wouldn't be better with a union at a place like SKW.

Lastly, employment contracts are just one thing of many that is beneficial for pilot unions.

 

My understanding that any part of AQP that you do not pass that causes you to go into "Special Tracking" will be a PRIA event. So basically the MV/KV/LOE(LOFT) and if you are getting your Type is all possible PRIA events.

 

Last I checked PSA, Envoy and ExpressJet all had ALPA representation. If I worked for one of those companies, I'd be livid with the union for having little efficacy with regard to the supposed benefits they provide, while taking money directly out of my paycheck. ALPA seems content taking our hard earned money and doing absolutely nothing in return.

SkyWest has an incentive to retain and attract good employees, from both a cultural and business perspective. There are many options in the industry for qualified line pilots. There is no monetary incentive for management to create a negative work environment when employees can readily find work elsewhere...be it at a major, regional, or otherwise.

Contracts are only useful if there isn't trust between the parties involved. Clearly your pontifications show a complete lack of factual knowledge regarding both the OO management style and company culture.

That's ok, you're opinion is likely informed by past experience. I can't fault you for that. That's how we all are. With a similar background I'd very likely feel the same way.

But, as someone with all the answers, you don't seem to be asking any questions. That's a terrible way to find the truth.

 

If Skywest had a union contract they wouldn't have been able to put a majority of your SFO pilots on reserve all summer in order to save on cancellation pay. It's not just about hourly rate.