commodity and responsibility are not mutual exclusive. But that is irrelevant. Market wages are determined by supply and demand and being a commodity doesn’t help the cause.

I realize that seniority is the backbone of this industry. But people also need to realize that it can get in the way of regular market dynamics.

 

Can you give an example of what that would actually look like?

Seniority is the worst form of career advancement except for all the others imo.

 

I am not sure I have a better suggestion. But SK didn’t become CEO because he stuck around for long enough. 80% of the world (pretty much all non-union) gigs run on market dynamics - the bedrock of this country.

 

CEO level positions are not interchangeable at all. You’re hiring a vision/work structure/etc. You need a specific person, a good CEO at one company could be terrible at another. Ditto with 80% of jobs. They’re quantifiable. You get hired as a programmer because you’ve delivered an impressive program. You get hired as a a manager because of quantifiable achievements (saved company X amount of money, turned around team C, etc). You get raises and promotions for these same tangible, demonstrable, and most importantly quantifiable achievements in an ideal world, or nepotism in many cases.

A pilot is pretty much a widget due to the advanced and specific FAA requirements for training.There is little meaningful difference to a manager between Chuck Yeager and the person that lands 1’ within the touchdown zone. We aren’t throwing 5 pilots at one upgrade slots and turning it into thunderdome. This is exactly what enables us to fly a safe operation on a daily basis.

 

I don’t disagree with that. But that leaves us right back at where we started. Pilots are completely undifferentiated widgets. We would all have been replaced / outsourced without the UPA protection. That also means that the responsibility we carry or what we believe we deserve means squat and why it is so difficult to get meaningful gains in contract negotiation.

 

So what do we think? Will this vacancy go junior given that you will probably be in training in November / December with potential vacation loss?

 

Generally, Regional pay is driven by supply and demand. Pay is just high enough to fill the seats. Right now, regional pay is a little low at some operators (thus attrition is exceeding hiring), and a little high at others like the AA wholly owned (hiring exceeding attrition).

Major airline pay however is artificially higher than it would be based on just supply/demand. That’s why HR has thousands of resumes, and they don’t have issues filling classes. If major airline pay were suddenly cut 20%, they would still have no issue filling classes.

 

How’s HR strategy compensation these days?

 

They might not have immediate issues filling classes but unless the airlines are willing to completely remove the high barriers to entry for this career, a 20% cut in pay will induce a future pilot shortage.

In the end, you’ll get what you pay for.

 

Not that much faster. Its not the Concorde.