Accruing longevity while on furlough- Which Major Airlines had this?

[Vref+10]

I tried posting this earlier, but I think it got dumped when the Flightinfo server crashed.

I was curious which major airlines allowed pilots to accrue longevity towards pay while out on furlough? AA, UAL, US Air, CAL, NWA, Delta....

My friend at Delta was out for 3 years, and when he came back, he was at 6 year pay (he already had 3 years in before the furlough).

 

[RichardFitzwell]

No longevity at Continental.

 

[iflyhigh]

No longevity at United.

 

[G4G5]

None at AA

 

[densoo]

I tried posting this earlier, but I think it got dumped when the Flightinfo server crashed.

I was curious which major airlines allowed pilots to accrue longevity towards pay while out on furlough? AA, UAL, US Air, CAL, NWA, Delta....

My friend at Delta was out for 3 years, and when he came back, he was at 6 year pay (he already had 3 years in before the furlough).

Sometimes the airline offers COLA (Company Offered Leave of Absence) as an option instead of furlough. Furlough usually requires the company to make an immediate payout that is based on the pilots years of service and payscale. The COLA kicks the can down the road because the pilot takes nothing now, but keeps longevity while on COLA. Company loses the pilot, keeps the money, and sticks its head in the sand in regards to the fact that in five years the returning COLA pilot will make up the furlough pay and then more in just a few years at the higher pay scale. Few people opt for COLAs though because pilots don't have any money put away or replacement income so they need the furlough payout now.

An unusual case happened at Expressjet recently that is related to this issue, though. The senior pilots there in the late 90s negotiated a flow through agreement at CAL that preserved their longevity at Express, even if they left the company and were hired at the mainline. They were, if effect, active on two ALPA seniority lists and accruing seniority on two ALPA lists at once. If they got "furloughed" from CAL they would flow back to Express at their original date of hire at Express as if they had never left. Don't know if this was unique in the airline industry, but it was a heck of good deal. What did they trade for this? All CAL "furloughs," including those who were never at Express, would also get to flow back to jobs at Express. Their so-called date of hire at Express would be inserted as their date of hire at the CAL. Also a heck of deal. This was so outgrageous that no one thought it would ever happen. When 650 pilots flowed back in 2001 to 2003, there were a lot of pilots displaced down and off the Express list. The prior Express pilots, because they came back at their original Expressjet date of hire, took over all the tops spots as the most senior pilots for a couple of years.

This was done away with in the last contract. You can imagine why.

 

[SWA/FO]

None....

 

[charley varrick]

At NW you could accrue one-year of longevity while on furlough, if you were off probation.

 

[Dennis Miller]

My friend at Delta was out for 3 years, and when he came back, he was at 6 year pay

Which is unfortunately the old 2 year pay.

 

[RichardFitzwell]

All CAL "furloughs," including those who were never at Express, would also get to flow back to jobs at Express. Their so-called date of hire at Express would be inserted as their date of hire at the CAL. Also a heck of deal. This was so outgrageous that no one thought it would ever happen. When 650 pilots flowed back in 2001 to 2003, there were a lot of pilots displaced down and off the Express list.

Just a small correction. Not ALL the 634 CAL pilots were offered the option to flow back to Express in 2001. About 80 pilots were a straight furlough with no options and no lump sum payout.

It's all good...

 

[Vref+10]

oh, so Delta was the only one then.

 

[densoo]

Just a small correction. Not ALL the 634 CAL pilots were offered the option to flow back to Express in 2001. About 80 pilots were a straight furlough with no options and no lump sum payout.

True. In a way they were double-furloughed. They were furloughed by the mainline to Express, but then too junior at Express and furloughed to the street. There are 80 guys who might be able to tell their grandkids that one day I was furloughed by two airlines in a single day. How many can say that. How many want to.

 

[CLE145CA]

All CAL "furloughs," including those who were never at Express, would also get to flow back to jobs at Express.

That is not entirely true. Not ALL furloughs could come to Express. Express would only take the number of pilots who flowed up to CAL during the duration of the flow-through agreement(s). As an example, if a total of 900 pilots had flowed up to CAL over the years, then only that many could come back to Express if CAL furloughed. If CAL furloughed 901+ then those extra would go to the street.

 

[typhoonpilot]

I tried posting this earlier, but I think it got dumped when the Flightinfo server crashed.

I was curious which major airlines allowed pilots to accrue longevity towards pay while out on furlough? AA, UAL, US Air, CAL, NWA, Delta....

My friend at Delta was out for 3 years, and when he came back, he was at 6 year pay (he already had 3 years in before the furlough).

I used to know the answer to this in regards to American and United. When they had pilots on furlough previously they did get some longevity negotiated at some point after their return. The American furloughees of 93-96 definitely had a partial longevity for pay purposes as did the United furloughees of the late 70s. I believe even America West had partial longevity for their pilots furloughed in the 90s. Of course, the previoulsy mentioned Delta deal was the best. At USAir(ways) we tried to use those facts to get our MEC to negotiate some accrual for our pay purposes when we returned from furlough in 1998. We never succeeded as the AAA MEC only ever bargained for the benefit of senior pilots.

What we at USAirways did get, and which was one of the biggest reasons to return, was longevity for retirement purposes. So after 8 years on furlough, those of us who returned had roughly 10 years in towards our final retirement. When the pension plan was termintated that become a moot point, but it was a very lucrative reason to return at the time. Some of the older guys returned just long enough to put in retirement papers.

The days of deals like that are over. As you can see, the younger posters who are recalling more recent furloughs have no recollection, nor did they get any longevity upon return.


Typhoonpilot