No comment on ASA PBS LOA yet?

[JoeMerchant]

yeah clearly the fight to the bottom is the best solution. It worked out for ever other airline right.

...and how as being at the top worked out for every other airline that tried it in this environment?

If we can't fix the problem with scope, or if we refuse to fix the scope problem, then we are forced to play the game....As I have said for years now...Either FIX the game, or play the game...ALPA can't seem to FIX it, therefor we play the game.....

 

[GeekMaster]

all this talk about 4 days. I want to know is there anything that says that they can't assign us all a 3 day with a 2 day attached. I would rather do a 4 day.

In this system of PBS, the company doesn't build LINES. They can't just arbitrarily put a 3 day followed by 2 day on you. YOU build your line; either by listing detailed bid preferences or getting more active and bidding ACTUAL trips in the order YOU want them. The agreement requires EVERY pilot to receive a paper trail of every trip on your bid sheet. There is NO globalization in this system. In short that means if its on your bid sheet and open at the time your seniority number comes up, you get the trips. The only way you'll get extra trips thrown on you against your will is if you don't bid enough trips/preferences, (Easily solvable by you) or you are so junior there is nothing else left.

If you are that close to the bottom, just as you do now, you can choose to bid a higher quality reserve line.

 

[GeekMaster]

The answer to this question is very simple. If you noticed in the last PBS update they said that there will be no furloughs or downgrades due to PBS. Yeah because they have already done them so they can say that. They would have to call the furloughs back during the busy summer schedule if they don't get PBS. It only makes sense since they say we need 10% less pilots and yet they don't need to furlough? Vote no and watch the furloughs come back.

With or without PBS, there will be NO callbacks this summer or any other time until the block hour total reaches the level required for the company "BUSINESS MODEL". That's how they determine the number of pilots to have on the payroll. As of now, we are still overstaffed according to that model. Therefore, when the summer schedule rolls around, they simply increase the block hours as high as needed to cover it. (as opposed to keeping them below 75 the way they do now)

The 10% less statement refers to needing 10% less to do a given amount of work. They DO NEED TO FURLOUGH in their mind. According to their business model, we're still a bit fat. The contract won't let them furlough anymore. The only way PBS will save the company a dime is to put more flying at ASA. That's an unpublished incentive for the company to put flying here.

 

[GeekMaster]

If you are an FO and voting yes on this TA I hope you like the stagnation. Growth may or may not come, I’m leaning toward not come. PBS isn’t going to change that. The one thing that is certain is that we will require about 10% less captains so it will be that much longer for upgrade and we would have to grow that much just to break even.

There is an unpublished factor at work here. This LOA will not save the company any money unless they increase the flying here. IN FACT, it will prove to be a really expensive program on their part if they DON'T put extra flying here. Remember, THEY PAID FOR ALL THE RESEARCH AND TALKS.

Stagnation will come if the company is compelled to put future work elsewhere.

 

[GeekMaster]

yeah clearly the fight to the bottom is the best solution. It worked out for ever other airline right.

This LOA doesn't ask any single pilot to take a pay concession. It only saves the company money if the company increases the workload here. If they do that, pilots will be afforded the opportunity to earn more money instead of being stuck with the <75 hour lines the CR2 guys are currently getting.

 

[GeekMaster]

the 10% came from what we have been told that PBS will make us more efficient by. If we are 10% more efficient you can bet that we will carry 10% less pilots. SH said that it will reduce the need for pilots but that is ok because of the huge pilot shortage.
Your right. A lot of this is unknown. The only thing that is certain is that we are voting away peoples jobs and they don't even get to vote on this.

What it ACTUALLY means is that the first round of increased flying will go toward filling that "gap" created by the increased efficiency. THEN AND ONLY THEN will furloughs be brought back as flying levels increase above that.

Do you think that Skywest Inc will increase our flying levels enough to bring the furloughs back if this LOA fails? That's an honest question, not an attack. I'm simply a line pilot attempting to tell it not sell it; the pure facts that is.

 

[aircombat]

yes I think they will have to call back some people if we vote no. We were understaffed last summer and I believe it will be worse this summer. How can we do that with less pilots. It's not even a debate that PBS will reduce pilot needs. We live in a supply and demand world. We are reducing our demand. Not smart and will cause everything I stated.

 

[GeekMaster]

yes I think they will have to call back some people if we vote no. We were understaffed last summer and I believe it will be worse this summer. How can we do that with less pilots. It's not even a debate that PBS will reduce pilot needs. We live in a supply and demand world. We are reducing our demand. Not smart and will cause everything I stated.

The schedules they wrote last summer may have given the "appearance" of being understaffed. The reason is one of simple economics. Spread the load out as thin as possible and still be able to operate the schedule. That means more lines and fewer reserves. (and keeping those lines as low block as possible) This summer will be no different even with less people. They will simply increase the average block value per line. Flying the people you have at a 90 hour average is cheaper than bringing back the furloughs.

THE ONLY WAY the furloughs are coming back is if our block hour level goes ABOVE the business model. That will happen when INC. makes a decision to put more flying here.

 

[sayrejm]

or a pilot shortage...

 

[GeekMaster]

Most economic indicators don't support a pilot shortage at ASA for at least 3-4 years..........minimum. There are still an INCREDIBLE number of pilots on furlough in this country.

Is this a sound decision to reject an LOA based on the idea of waiting on a pilot shortage?

Reject it based on the factual information contained within it. That's a valid reason. Rejecting it for no other reason than thinking we can do better later (for whatever reason) is a rather foolish game. What if it's a good LOA now?