Skywest v2.0
09-13-2016 | 07:59 AM
#3231
Gets Weekends Off
Joined: Jun 2016
Posts: 443
Likes: 0
You can already see that. Just look at the flow board. If I bid for a certain trip and didn't get it, I can always wait till the day prior to the trip and check the flow board to see who got it.
In that respect, our bids are already 'transparent.' It's just a giant PITA to actually see who got the trip. The company blathers on about 'privacy'...well, if the vast majority of the pilot group wants their bids published, as I am entirely sure is the case, then privacy is not a concern...and there isn't any privacy anyways because of the flow board.
The company just doesn't want people seeing how often seniority is being ignored. PBS is only as good as the parameters the company sets for it, and globalization (read: ignoring seniority) is the only way PBS is able to cover so much flying with 10% fewer pilots than other airlines. It's just simple math.
And I say this as someone who knows, reasonably well, how to bid (I finally read the entire PBS manual cover to cover multiple times, and experimented with different strategies....after 2 years I can finally get all P1/P2 trips, even with the September dropoff in flying.
But again, when the company insists that XX pilots cover XXXXX hours of flying, the only way to do that is via globalization. And the company would prefer that we not see exactly how pernicious this problem is, nor what it does to senior folks who aren't awarded the trips they should be able to hold.
In that respect, our bids are already 'transparent.' It's just a giant PITA to actually see who got the trip. The company blathers on about 'privacy'...well, if the vast majority of the pilot group wants their bids published, as I am entirely sure is the case, then privacy is not a concern...and there isn't any privacy anyways because of the flow board.
The company just doesn't want people seeing how often seniority is being ignored. PBS is only as good as the parameters the company sets for it, and globalization (read: ignoring seniority) is the only way PBS is able to cover so much flying with 10% fewer pilots than other airlines. It's just simple math.
And I say this as someone who knows, reasonably well, how to bid (I finally read the entire PBS manual cover to cover multiple times, and experimented with different strategies....after 2 years I can finally get all P1/P2 trips, even with the September dropoff in flying.
But again, when the company insists that XX pilots cover XXXXX hours of flying, the only way to do that is via globalization. And the company would prefer that we not see exactly how pernicious this problem is, nor what it does to senior folks who aren't awarded the trips they should be able to hold.
09-13-2016 | 08:20 AM
#3232
Gets Weekends Off
Joined: Aug 2015
Posts: 2,612
Likes: 519
From: Guppy Gear Slinger
09-13-2016 | 08:24 AM
#3233
Gets Weekends Off
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 1,186
Likes: 0
From: RJ Captain
Has management already agreed to this if the vote passes or is SAPA just hoping they will?
09-13-2016 | 08:26 AM
#3234
Gets Weekends Off
Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 1,464
Likes: 0
Probably another "agreement" that TG will just say "oh yeah we don't recognize that anymore."
09-13-2016 | 08:28 AM
#3235
Gets Weekends Off
Joined: Oct 2015
Posts: 472
Likes: 0
a good read on our PBS solution... specifically the "greedy" option vs. "global opt"
What is Preferential Bidding System ?
What is Preferential Bidding System ?
09-13-2016 | 08:57 AM
#3236
Line Holder
Joined: Apr 2016
Posts: 28
Likes: 0
As a 50% FO I can say I've been getting F'ed by PBS. I bid pretty loosely and request just a specific days off and open it to absolutely everything. I can have layer 4 at 70% of the pairing and it will still drop down to PN'd trips because of BS line constraints. When I was at the bottom of guaranteed line holders I was able to get all my days off I requested. It's the middle of the pack that gets boned due to "coverage dates" PBS determines I have to fly. I needed literally just that one stretch of days 3-4 off and it gives me a PN'd trip over those days but a random 5 day block off on a totally different week that I don't even want.
I voted Yes, in hopes that it can fix this stupid "line constraint" issue. I'm not saying it will be rainbows and puppies but it certainly can't get any worse then what it is now. And if you vote "no" because you think you have PBS figured out perfectly, I guarantee you are in for a rude awakening at some point
I voted Yes, in hopes that it can fix this stupid "line constraint" issue. I'm not saying it will be rainbows and puppies but it certainly can't get any worse then what it is now. And if you vote "no" because you think you have PBS figured out perfectly, I guarantee you are in for a rude awakening at some point
09-13-2016 | 09:10 AM
#3237
Gets Weekends Off
Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 1,464
Likes: 0
As a 50% FO I can say I've been getting F'ed by PBS. I bid pretty loosely and request just a specific days off and open it to absolutely everything. I can have layer 4 at 70% of the pairing and it will still drop down to PN'd trips because of BS line constraints. When I was at the bottom of guaranteed line holders I was able to get all my days off I requested. It's the middle of the pack that gets boned due to "coverage dates" PBS determines I have to fly. I needed literally just that one stretch of days 3-4 off and it gives me a PN'd trip over those days but a random 5 day block off on a totally different week that I don't even want.
I voted Yes, in hopes that it can fix this stupid "line constraint" issue. I'm not saying it will be rainbows and puppies but it certainly can't get any worse then what it is now. And if you vote "no" because you think you have PBS figured out perfectly, I guarantee you are in for a rude awakening at some point
I voted Yes, in hopes that it can fix this stupid "line constraint" issue. I'm not saying it will be rainbows and puppies but it certainly can't get any worse then what it is now. And if you vote "no" because you think you have PBS figured out perfectly, I guarantee you are in for a rude awakening at some point
I found the 45-70% bidding percentage to be horrible. Above and below you pretty much get anything you want.
09-13-2016 | 09:26 AM
#3238
Line Holder
Joined: Jul 2016
Posts: 34
Likes: 0
How hard is it to become apart of a Chief Pilot's Office or apart of Pilot Recruitment within the first two years of being a pilot at SkyWest? Is it possible? How long would a pilot have to be at SkyWest in order to obtain one of those opportunities?
09-13-2016 | 09:32 AM
#3239
Gets Weekends Off
Joined: Aug 2007
Posts: 2,049
Likes: 0
From: I pilot
Pilot recruiter requires at least 1 year, but last year they had a ton of applications. Chief will take longer.
09-13-2016 | 09:38 AM
#3240
Gets Weekends Off
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 1,186
Likes: 0
From: RJ Captain
My experience has been different. I've been bidding middle of the pack since PBS started a decade ago. I typically get good lines. I've only had a CN once maybe 6 years or so ago, and only 2-3 PN trips as well. The last one 5+ years ago.
Now when I say a good line. I mean good for 40-50%. I sometimes think expectations are out of line with bidding % for some pilots. I don't expect weekends off if I bid certain types of pairings.... I can get the holidays off though, but will have to work the weekend after Thanksgiving, etc..
I know for certain that some of the pilots that complain do not know how to bid. Most of the problems can be narrowed down to bidding errors. --- And if it says the average line value is 87 don't expect to get 75 if you're not bidding in the top 20-30%. You probably shouldn't expect that nice of a line if you are not bidding in the top 20-30% as well.
Replaced due to line constraints. Did it take a lower paying pairing that might have been a good one and give you a higher paying less desirable to you 2,3, or 4 day, and then give your pairing to someone junior. Look to the line values and minimum credit you need and you'll have your answer.
Now when I say a good line. I mean good for 40-50%. I sometimes think expectations are out of line with bidding % for some pilots. I don't expect weekends off if I bid certain types of pairings.... I can get the holidays off though, but will have to work the weekend after Thanksgiving, etc..
I know for certain that some of the pilots that complain do not know how to bid. Most of the problems can be narrowed down to bidding errors. --- And if it says the average line value is 87 don't expect to get 75 if you're not bidding in the top 20-30%. You probably shouldn't expect that nice of a line if you are not bidding in the top 20-30% as well.
Replaced due to line constraints. Did it take a lower paying pairing that might have been a good one and give you a higher paying less desirable to you 2,3, or 4 day, and then give your pairing to someone junior. Look to the line values and minimum credit you need and you'll have your answer.
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
