A bit melodramatic, Chest?
SWA is a superior company. However, a lot of APAAD support came from SWA...arguably because the 401k/profit sharing plans at your company, while a great vessel for guys who've been there since the early 90s won't quite stretch for some of the older hires who joined your team since then.
It will as good if not better (401k is available in the first year) than those hired in the early 90's with the same amount of time before retirement.
The ability to walk away "complete" at 60 was a major attraction of this career field to a lot of people. Right or wrong, everyone who was in the industry prior to the law change has had their career advance as others ahead of them have stepped aside. In what other industry are we so proud of negotiating away a "Perk" or a safety latch depending on which way you look at it?
Advancement is not an entitlement. Several things other than this rule change will have much more of an effect on one's advancement. I don't buy the safety argument but I could live with a transition period of 60+ in the right seat if that is what it took to get things changed.
What is irritating are not only the career setbacks, but the "moral high ground" taken by those pro-change dispite the benefits. At Fedex, they are calling it "protecting seniority..."
Seniority based advancement is one of the biggest problems in this industry.
I think the winning side needs to extend an olive branch--perhaps a tweak up in the payrates of those trapped 5 more years in the right seat. That opinion seems to be waaaay in the miniority at our place.
Perhaps. I don't think anyone will be delayed by 5 years due to this change. Not all will stay past 60, many if not most won't stay until 65 due to a myriad of reasons.
Either way--my crew has told me to shut up and color. And a lot of other folks. So I expect there to be some new faces involved in the union in future years...
Unfortunately, most union representation tends to better represent those with advanced seniority better than those who are junior. We will all get there and spend a fair amount of time as a senior pilot. That works only if your carrier is growing, and nothing lasts forever.
Things change. Buggy whips and saddles are now novelties, not transportation staples. Ever try finding a manual typewriter at the store lately? Things change. Age 60 is going away. We'll all adapt. But the change will be a lot smoother if those on the "winning" side quit telling us how "right" it is as they bury their little trotters in the trough.
