New CAL 737 Bases DEN / ORD

[100/hour/5y]

New bid is coming out JAN 2011... Manpower planning is loading it today... You can see the new bases under standing system bid..

ORD 737

DEN 737

It makes you wonder what else mgt plans to cancel in the T&A agreement?

 

[Andy]

Section 7-C.

 

[densoo]

DEN, ORD not there!

 

[Andy]

I don't know if you're referring to Section 8; unfortunately, it expired at the end of 2010 so it's already 'cancelled'.
They'll hold the UAL pilot population static - no recalls and no furloughs - except for attrition. All growth will occur on the CAL side. That will definitely void Section 7-C.

 

[ATRCA]

IAH A320 rumored as well.

 

[eaglesview]

I don't know if you're referring to Section 8; unfortunately, it expired at the end of 2010 so it's already 'cancelled'.
They'll hold the UAL pilot population static - no recalls and no furloughs - except for attrition. All growth will occur on the CAL side. That will definitely void Section 7-C.

1988/89 I was at Eastern and watched all of our flying go to CO. In fact while we were on strike I even got to watch CO pick up "new flying" like BOS ATL, PHL ATL ect. Now this crap. We will look like East West in a hurry.

 

[ATRCA]

1988/89 I was at Eastern and watched all of our flying go to CO. In fact while we were on strike I even got to watch CO pick up "new flying" like BOS ATL, PHL ATL ect. Now this crap. We will look like East West in a hurry.

Until one of our groups attempts to cut it's own deal with mgt, I don't see a correlation between Airways and UCal. No system bid has been posted with new bases. These are rumors at this point. There have been a number of aircraft utilization changes in the last several months. Some have gone the way of CAL and some have gone to UAL. There will be more in the future. If our groups elect to bicker and fight with one another because of the decisions our management team makes than we deserve our fate.


EDIT;
It just occurred to me that you may not have been referring to East/West as in USA E/W. If not, than my post is without the proper context.

 

[Andy]

1988/89 I was at Eastern and watched all of our flying go to CO. In fact while we were on strike I even got to watch CO pick up "new flying" like BOS ATL, PHL ATL ect. Now this crap. We will look like East West in a hurry.

This will continue to happen until there's a JCBA. Our unions negotiated a TPA with sunset provisions that favor management. Management is not going to pass up the 'opportunity' to shift flying to the lower cost side of the operation prior to a JCBA being signed.
While I think that management expected to be further along with the integration process at this point in time, I don't think that they intentionally negotiated the TPA in bad faith. However, they are going to shift flying to the lowest cost side of the operation. How much does the expiration of section 8 alone save the company in profit sharing?

This shift in flying will continue to happen until a JCBA is signed. However, I don't see this as a repeat of Eastern in the late 80s because after the JCBA is signed, everyone will be on the same payscale and work rules. The JCBA will happen but right now management has no incentive to move quickly on it.

 

[whatitdoing?]

Andy, you guys had 500 furlough letters that was mailed or just about to be mailed just prior to the merger announcement and then rescinded. I don't think stagnation is or was the issue. I would say retraction in all honesty. Growth was already happening before, during, and after this merger.

 

[Andy]

Andy, you guys had 500 furlough letters that was mailed or just about to be mailed just prior to the merger announcement and then rescinded. I don't think stagnation is or was the issue. I would say retraction in all honesty. Growth was already happening before, during, and after this merger.

The UAL side of the fence was trimmed to make CAL and UAL a better fit, including getting past regulatory hurdles. If I had been calling the shots on the merger, I would also do all of the trimming on the UAL side due to it being a higher cost operation.
Whether we're talking CAL or UAL pilots/crews/planes, it's all just widgets to management. If the profit margin was higher on the UAL side, all of the cuts would have happened on the CAL side of the fence.

 

[whatitdoing?]

The UAL side wasn't trimmed to make it a better fit. It was trimmed because of financial reason tied to not being productive enough in their eyes and years of mismanagement. Higher cost operation or higher waste operation? I agree with you that it's just widgets and they don't care about us. As far as profit margins, I don't know. I seem to remember UAL side making more money, but I don't know if it's just because of size or trimming the fat. But our growth was planned, our expansion was planned, and our ac deliveries were planned. All I can remember is furlough and cuts planned along with financial futures in question. I'm not bashing you or any other UAL pilot. I'm on board with all you guys, but to say that we're the cause of your reduction isn't accurate.

 

[waveflyer]

Andy-
Got a cliff notes version of what's delaying the jcba?
I have heard that mgmt is doing it's best to delay and fracture the two against each other- but that's just hearsay

 

[Andy]

Wave, my understanding is that it's due to unforeseen IT and infrastructure issues. Those issues don't allow the two sides to operate as one yet.
For management, the cost of a new contract is somewhere in the ballpark of $600 million annually. If there's no positive impact to the bottom line of a new contract, why would the company rush in and sign a new contract? Like it or not, they're keeping expenses down until they need to implement a combined pilot workforce.

Since UCH has started to hire UAL furloughees at CAL, there's no incentive for them to recall those same pilots to the UAL side of the fence and then have to train other UAL furloughees on the CAL side. Now that the training pipeline is open on the CAL side of the fence, it would be very expensive to open the training pipeline on the UAL side of the fence.
Management will simply turn back 757 leases on the UAL side of the fence to keep the UAL pilot population static - no furloughs and no recalls.

The fastest way to a JCBA is getting past all of the IT and other integration issues.

 

[nimtz]

Andy, you guys had 500 furlough letters that was mailed or just about to be mailed just prior to the merger announcement and then rescinded.

Proof? First time I've heard this one.

 

[whatitdoing?]

Got it initially from a United crew in YVR. The FO was a few from the bottom and said that he thought he was done because he and 500 or so others got their letters with marching orders. He said the merger announcement came and it was cancelled. We toasted to luck over a few beers and he said he just wanted some stability in his life and for his family. I had a very good response from him and the Captain. Actually had a good time. It was nice to see how we all wanted the same thing. I then asked one of our local reps in IAH during a local meeting and they confirmed it as what they were told.