FurloughedAgain said:
3) What should the pilots want in exchange for such a merger?
This is the only one I want to answer -- but I agree with Treme. If the company chooses to merge ASA/Comair in order to reduce redundancies and improve the DCI product I would be willing to entertain the idea of concessions to help the process along IF...
There were an ironclad guarantee providing that all current and future DCI flying will be performed by the new entity, along with a reasonable timeline to transfer the flying back from Chautauqua, ACA, and Skywest.
I'm sure that i'm dreaming.
Thanks for the reply. I understand why you chose not to respond to the other 4 questions.
Unfortunately I must agree with your statement, i.e., "I'm sure that I'm dreaming." and what goes before it. I hate to be negative but I see no possibility that the Company will agree to terminate the advantages it has gained from the diversity of its "regional portfolio". Especially in the light of the decisions made by those other pilot groups (SKYW, CHQ, et al.)
Also, the Company can realize the benefits of merging CMR/ASA at any time and does not need the cooperation of the CMR or ASA pilot groups. Nothing prevents it from doing that. If it does not choose to merge us, obviously someone high enough in management believes that the cost/benefit of not merging outweigs the cost/benefit of a merger. Leverage against labor appears to be the reason. I wish it were not so but I believe that it is.
Like you, I see no material advantage
for the pilots to a merger between CMR and ASA that would justify any form of concessions to the current Comair PWA. In that the ASA contract is currently inferior to the CMR contract, there is nothing for ASA to concede. I firmly believe that we should not pay for or attempt to buy, that which benefits the Company and does not benefit us equally, if at all.
Since the management has alleged that the concessions requested amount to appoximately $8 millions per annum, the savings generated by a merger of ASA/CMR would appear to exceed that amount by a wide margin. If that is so, the Company can save far more than we can "concede" simply by acting in its own interests. I would argue that the Company's failure to allow itself these benefits, while asking us for concessions, is indicative of the disingenuous nature of the Company's request.
If they need concessions fine -- Lets see what job security guarantees they can provide in return. Lets see them terminate the contracts of the affiliate carriers.
Job security is a valuable commodity. In normal negotiations we pay for it. It concessionary bargaining, it might be worth paying for as well. However, we must be very careful.
If we could not achieve any job security in a strike that allegedly cost the Company more than $700 millions (their numbers) in 3 months, how can we expect to purchase it now for $8 millions a year? This does not compute.
Does the Company, and by that I mean Delta Air Lines (not Comair) need to reduce its costs? I think the answer is yes.
Is Comair the source of those excessive costs? Given the recently released statistics on CMR cost compared to the other top seven regionals, it would appear the answer is, NO. However, there are at least two Delta affiliates whose numbers don't appear in that equation. One is CHQ and the other is the new SKYW agreement (with respect in particular to the CRJ-700 class of aircraft). Additionally such carriers as EGL, MESA, TSA and the AAA subsidiaries (which were not included) all have compensation packages considerably below the Comair package.
This does NOT mean that Comair cannot compete with them and still make a profit. It just means that CMR, and therefore Delta, could make MORE, if we are paid less. That seems to be the Company's reason for asking. Delta is making a profit from our operation. Delta would like to make a bigger profit. No business misses and opportunity to get more. That the "more" may come on the backs of the non-executive employees has never been a factor in the minds of the Executives.
Additionally, the Delta pilots have indicated that they will resist concessions unless "every one else" gives concessions. Currently, that operation is a huge drain on the Company and the disparity between the Delta pilots compensation package and that of American, AAA, UAL, NWA and CAL (not to mention JBlue and AirTran) is enormous, compared to the disparity between Comair and SKYW or CHQ. Nevertheless, the squeaky door gets the oil, especially when its the biggest door in the house. Delta management will do what it can to encourage concessions from the Delta pilots. I have little doubt that the request for concessions at Comair is directly related to that.
I don't mind saying that I am not among those who think we should concede anything merely because another pilot group thinks that we should.
(Job security is always a hot-button with newhires and members of the frequent-furlough club. I'm both.)
Job securtity
should be a hot button. I believe that every senior Comair pilot should do whatever is needed to secure as much job security as possible for our junior pilots. I also believe that we should protect their already low pay to the extent possible.
That doesn't mean that we should give away the farm or any part of it in fear of losing our security. However, it does mean that if sacrifices do have to be made, we must protect our junior pilots and those of us more able to absorb the impact should do so in preference to those less able. We have done so in the past and I sincerely hope we will never change that. What is important is the security of
ALL, not just those that came before some date on a calendar. That may be different from the practice of other groups. If so, it is a difference that we do well to preserve.
I was one of the people that encouraged you to come here. I am just as committed to protecting your interests as a junior member of our group as I am to protecting my own interests. I trust and believe that a majority of my fellow CMR pilots are of the same mind.
