Atlas Air Interview

[Captain Monkey Suit]

Here's some new questions for you guys at Atlas and Polar:
1) When does Atlas's contract expire or due to be re-negotiated? Do you expect there to be similar issues than what Polar is currently going through? I am familiar with the fact that they are different companies (AAWW)...pay scales are different...ACMI's vs scheduled. I was thinking more along the lines of scope (job protection and mergers), and work rules at Atlas.

2) Denise in HR told me that she was setting up "interviewing for Atlas..." but later said she places the pilots from the pool into either Polar or Atlas and she will sort as she needs. If offered Polar...assuming you were in the pilot pool...can you ask to hold off until Atlas is available? It appears to be a catch 22...If Polar hires you...then as a probationary pilot with no protection...your gonna get fired for not flying the line when told not to by the union...OR...for a few...become "black-listed" as scabs.

3) Is it true that about "24 pilots were "furloughed" from Polar...yet "all" were offered jobs with Atlas...and "all" excepted. This board also references that these guys furloughed, were not the 24 junior most guys. Is this true?

4) Does AAWW want to merge Polar into Atlas? If so...any scope clauses in either TA or contract?

Let me make it clear that I am not trying to stir anything up, I am just researching the situation so that I can make an intelligent choice for myself.
Again...thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts and opinions.

 

[KeroseneSnorter]

Here's some new questions for you guys at Atlas and Polar:
1) When does Atlas's contract expire or due to be re-negotiated? Do you expect there to be similar issues than what Polar is currently going through? I am familiar with the fact that they are different companies (AAWW)...pay scales are different...ACMI's vs scheduled. I was thinking more along the lines of scope (job protection and mergers), and work rules at Atlas.

2) Denise in HR told me that she was setting up "interviewing for Atlas..." but later said she places the pilots from the pool into either Polar or Atlas and she will sort as she needs. If offered Polar...assuming you were in the pilot pool...can you ask to hold off until Atlas is available? It appears to be a catch 22...If Polar hires you...then as a probationary pilot with no protection...your gonna get fired for not flying the line when told not to by the union...OR...for a few...become "black-listed" as scabs.

3) Is it true that about "24 pilots were "furloughed" from Polar...yet "all" were offered jobs with Atlas...and "all" excepted. This board also references that these guys furloughed, were not the 24 junior most guys. Is this true?

4) Does AAWW want to merge Polar into Atlas? If so...any scope clauses in either TA or contract?

Let me make it clear that I am not trying to stir anything up, I am just researching the situation so that I can make an intelligent choice for myself.
Again...thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts and opinions.

1. Atlas contract comes due in January. Probably going to be a similar fight over here in a year or so. I do not see mgmt. changing tactics for Atlas. QOL issues will probably be the sticker point. (Just my guess)
2. Probably will not be a factor for you, will most likely be done one way or another by then.
3. All the guys with less than 12 months service were fired, NOT furloughed. Rough number is about 48 to 52 total, Furlough notices have been sent out to others. The fired new hires were offered slots at Atlas. I do not know the number that took it. I do know a couple of guys that left for CAL and will not return.
4. Who knows, It depends on the day and if it is to mgmts. advantage. (There has been friction at the barganing table about this, mgmt refused to put it in writing earlier in the negotiations, then offered it at a later time, who knows)

 

[mar]

Preferential Hiring?

The fired new hires were offered slots at Atlas.

Were they actually made job offers?

In one of Erikson's voicemails he mentioned "preferential hiring" for the terminated Polar probbies.

To me that sounded like they had to endure another interview but I'm pretty unclear about it.

 

[Captain Monkey Suit]

Good information keroseneSnorter...that helps a bit.

 

[KeroseneSnorter]

Were they actually made job offers?

In one of Erikson's voicemails he mentioned "preferential hiring" for the terminated Polar probbies.

To me that sounded like they had to endure another interview but I'm pretty unclear about it.

Why would they need to interview again? They were interviewed by Atlas the first time.

There is no difference in the hiring process between Atlas/Polar. During my interview Both the Polar and Atlas CP were in attendance. I didn't know which airline I was going to get the job with until they called with a class date. That is what I meant in the other thread when I said we (newbies) all considered ourselves as one pilot group. Everybody trains together the first two weeks. Then you are split off into your aircraft type (classic or 400) and airline specific classes.

In short, no interviews, just a new class date with a quick course for the Polar transfers (Quick course is 20 days, half of the normal.)

The only downside is that the Polar guys lose their seniority. So the Atlas guys that they were hired with will end up senior to them through no fault of the Polar guy. The Polar guys were "assigned" to Polar so it doesn't really seem right that a guy hired 10 months after he/she was by the same company get seniority over them, but oh well.

I think most of the Atlas newbies feel that the Polar guys should be given their original DOH and reintergrated into the class they were hired with. I am sure that there are a few "I got mine so get lost" type of folks, but I would have no problem with a reintegration by DOH. It would add a few under me and a few above me, but would not affect me by more than a few numbers reletive to the whole group. After all, they (polar newbies) had zero control over what has transpired.

 

[mar]

I'm just trying to avoid assumptions, that's all

Great! Thanks for clearing that up for me.

When I interviewed last year it was specifically for Atlas. You identified a couple issues I had not considered before.

 

[KeroseneSnorter]

Great! Thanks for clearing that up for me.

When I interviewed last year it was specifically for Atlas. You identified a couple issues I had not considered before.

Yea I was originally given a Polar class date, then an Atlas class opened up that was earlier so I took it.

As far as the reintegration, I think they should do it that way. The way I look at it I always knew when the merger came that the classes that were jointly hired by both would probably go DOH anyhow (99% chance anyhow given historical data from other ALPA mergers) I cannot in my right mind justify putting some guy on the bottom of the list for my own gain of a few numbers, especially since I showed up the same day he did and both of us were sucking down cold beverages together during the first weekend! Even during checkride week both Atlas and Polar folks were getting together in study groups to review systems, then break off for our airline specific callouts and SOP's and such.