Public Perception

[VampyreGTX]

I was just arguing with two business men on the train to my finance job about the airlines. We started on the fact that United Exec's got millions in bonuses. I stayed out until one of them started saying how pilots are overpaid glorified bus-drivers. I couldn't believe how long it took me to make them believe me that the 'average' pilot salary wasn't almost 200K, that the new pilot for a regional starts at 20K if they're lucky and that most of my friends are on food-stamps. They kept saying that their's no way they make that little.

Do I think there should be such a huge disparity between a newbie pilot and a 20 year senior pilot, I don't know. But the 30% paycuts etc I think should be staggered. How much does that pay cut hurt someone making 30K dropping to 20K versus someone making 300K dropping to 200K.

I agreed with them that the bonuses to the execs is complete crap, what other job do you get a bonus for losing less money then expected? Oh, you only lost 900 million this year instead of 1 billion?! Here's a 10 millions bonus! In my business, it's you lost 10 million? You're fired!

Just my .02, but it's interesting to see the publics perception of the airline industry. I can't believe so many people who do nothing more than ever sit in the back of the plane think that being in that cockpit is such an easy, non-stressfull, money-making job.

 

[Flying Illini]

Yup, it's frustrating. And if you let it get to you, it'll drive you crazy how misinformed the general public is. If, during the course of my conversations with others, pilot pay comes up (which you would be surprised how often it seems to), I give them the ugly truth. My fiance hears this at work all the time, "Your fiance is a pilot? You must just be working for fun then!" It's definitely frustrating. Oh well.

 

[mach tuck]

Amen sister! I had a passenger ask me over the Christmas holiday what it was like to have to be away from home and my family during the holidays. After I told him, he says, "That's why you guys get paid the big bucks." I almost crapped myself. If the general public knew how much we get paid, they would probably tip us instead of their taxi driver. But tipping is another thread in itself.


mach

 

[Dash8]

I hate people...

 

[inline]

I was just arguing with two business men on the training how pilots are overpaid glorified bus-drivers.

I'll bet most municipal bus drivers make way more than your average RJF.O.( and some capts) Not to mention all the bennies that gov.employeesget. No checkrides, easy medicals, virtually impossible to get fired.No mandatory age 60 retirement.

 

[jetexas]

The airlines, or perhaps the unions?, have done a pretty good job at confusing the public or masking low pay. For one, the payscales.

FO ___ starts out making $22.00 an hour. 99.9% of the public who hears this thinks "well, that's not too bad, my brother, the pipe fitters apprentice, only made $16.00 an hour when he started out!"

So, you try to explain that the maximum we can fly is 100 hours a month. Without listening to the explanation, most people will think "100 hours a month?? That's it? Boy, I wish I could work only 25 hours a week!"

Also, the airlines will always throw in more when this hints at or becomes public in the press. "Yeah, but that pilot tops out at $90,000 a year". Again...the public..."$90,000 a year! Wow, I wish I could make that!!" They don't understand that you may make less than 40K/year for 10-20 years! Most guys making 200K/year were hired into a major in their early 20's and are now getting ready to retire. A mere fraction of the work force. Again, not understood.

I have had many people that just REFUSE to believe I make so little. They pass it off as nonsense or a bad joke. THAT's how deeply engrained this is. I wonder when/if it will ever change? Even if the public did know how little pilots make these days, they probably would not do anything about it, nor care. Supply and Demand.

 

[avbug]

Pilots are overpaid bus drivers...and a dime a dozen. And that would be fine, except that all too often, pilots are underpaid bus drivers.

I really don't care about the public perception; it's meaningless. Image is nothing (obey your thirst). But like the man said, show us the money. As good ole' fox moulder would say...it's out there.


Somewhere.


Far from here...

 

[English]

I'll go with us being glorified bus drivers, but definitely not overpaid.

 

[learflyer]

It's time to call Barbara Walters and have her do a story on us on 20/20 to get the word out! Have it air directly after the superbowl so the whole world knows how much pilots really make.

 

[avbug]

No, don't let the secret out. That's what the world wants. Or so the germans would have us believe...

 

[Buschpilot]

I was thinking about this the other day (again). Illini is right, itdoes come up in conversation more than I would like. I always feel likeI'm griping (I guess I kinda am), but more importantly, I think peopleneed to understand what the airline life is REALLY like. Some of thelooks of surprise I get amaze me. People really don't know. Avbug sayspublic perception means nothing, and I disagree. Look at the media.Never once have they mentioned anything other than the top pay tiers atour 'legacy' airlines. I sent a nice email to a reporter at a largenewspaper last year and corrected his statement(s) that 'abc airlinepilots make$180k, and only work 80 hours a month'. Whether he trulybelieved that, or was writing for shock value, I don't know, but Icalled him on it. His reply was actually very kind and professional,but never did I see another article from him (or anyone else) statingwhat is really involved. The point is that people read/see this, andfeel no pity for what is happening to the industry. Now, flip the coin.If they did know all the facts about pay, benefits,schedules (whe elsecan work 16 hours a day for 4 hours pay????) and believed it, theirperception MAY change. People MAY be willing to pay a few bucks morefor a ticket. Or people may say 'no way am I flying thatairline...those guys make less than retail employees!' (i think Icertainly would if wasn't in this business and knew how professionaland skilled pilots are).

Of course, the union contracts, rigs, etc make it no better. I have noidea what I make until w-2's come out. People say how much do you make?I say $30/hour. They say, that's not bad. I say, wait, it gets better.Then I end up trying to explain duty rigs, min guarantees, TAFB, etcand you can literally watch their eyes glaze over as my $30/hr shrinksto about $10 a real hour.

Point I'm blabbing to make is that it is everyones fault, from thecompanies to the unions, to the media, to public perception, to themarketplace (oh, and lets not forget the RLA from 1930-something thatgoverns us). I don't know what the solution is, but we need to dosomething. I'm getting tired of worrying about what is going to happenif my car breaks, and then turning around and hearing how 'cool' it isto be a pilot and to have all that time off and make decent coin. Maybesomeday all that good/cool stuff will be true. But that day isn'ttoday, and the way life is headed it may never come for a great manypilots. You can argue that it will get better in time, and I have nodoubt it will, but that time went from 1-2 years to well over 7 in mycase. It may no longer be worth it, because not only do I WANT toretire someday, I WILL retire someday. 401(k)/pension/IRA or not, I'mout of a job in 30 years.

If you see a flawed news article, email a constuctive letter to thewriter. Any good journalist will listen and maybe learn. 9time out of ten they interview management types and get thismisinformation. Or worse, they scour the net for info. Setthem straight in a professional manner. Maybe it'll come backaround. Ignore the shock jock writers we've been hearing about.

Get involved in the union. Don't do it to throw rocks at management, but do it to better the system.

Write your congress person or senator. Some of these silly airline rules need to change.

Write for publications. There is an editorial section of almostevery newspaper out there. The best one I ever saw was a FlightAttendant that wrote a wonderful article (not a letter!) abouthow the industry is changing her life for the worse. It gotprinted in a major metropolitan paper and I'm sure that made animpression for folks.

Anyway, I better not rant anymore. I'm gonna start soundingbitter and unhappy, which mostly isn't true (only sometimes)

 

[Buschpilot]

Man, I even edited that twice, and the spaces are still missing!!! My appologies to the editing police out there.....

B

 

[Flying Illini]

I see dead people, er, I mean, I see spaces.

 

[avbug]

You are really sure that telling your neighbor and writing congress is going to bring you the rainfall of money you want? You really think that the public cares what you make? I don't care what you make. Why should the public care?

The darndest thing is that with tusnami's obliterating tens of thousands of lives, with starvation rampant thorughout the world, with the unemployment problems we face in our own socieity, the high illiteracy rate, the gang wars, cancer, and so many other issues, what we really need right now is to rally congress and the american public to make sure that airline pilots make more money. I'm sure the media and special interest groups everywhere will drop what they're doing, and will be all over that.

Educate the public. Don't let them get away with a misconception about you. You're the most important thing in their lives, and they have absolutely no right to think you earn more than they do. Or to go on about their lives until you earn what you feel you should. After all, you took the job knowing what you'd make. You made this your career, but dammit, you shouldn't have to live with that decision, and it's the responsibility of every red blooded citizen, every elected official, to see that you get what you think you have coming to you.

It's a tough job. The hard physical labor, getting into that shepskin padded seat every day. Lifting a checklist. Walking up the stairs to the jetway. Ouch. It makes the arches burn, the back ache. Then there's getting out of the seat at the end of a trip, and the turning. Always a chance of popping a vertebrae. Yet you do it without complaint, day in and day out, fifteen days out of every month. Or more. Don't even mention the exposure to gamma radiation at altitude, the galley food, the bad coffee, and the weather.

Folks who work in steel mills, gas stations, driving a cab, roping cattle, riviting the aircraft you fly, they just don't appreciate you or what you go through, and that's gotta change. They need to see your hardships in order to understand how easy their lives are. Those who work two full time jobs to make ends meet, they just don't understand your trials, your tribulations, and we need to enlist the help of the media in getting the message out. Airline pilots are people too, and the world has GOT to understand what it's like to be an airline pilot...perhaps the toughest, hardest, most underappreciated, underpaid group of suffering pathetic masses in the workforce. No, in the world.

Write the congressmen. And congresswomen. Write the media. Tell your neighbor. Every one of them is standing by like a coiled spring; they're just right there, desperate for you to ask so that they can help. I wouldn't be a bit surprised if they didn't offer you ten percent of their own income just to right this terrible injustice. Good idea there. I'm sure the public at large is there for your support, if only they can be made to understand.

Good luck with that.

 

[flyifrvfr]

In my opinion, pilot pay will never be what it once was. Airlines are asking for pilots to accept pay cuts or face loosing their jobs altogether. I think the pilots who took the pay cuts actually did themselves a diservice. The pay cuts alone will not be enough for a financially troubled airline to remain in business.

US Airways is pretty much on its deathbed with Delta not far behind. If I were a pilot flying for either airline and was asked to take a pay cut to remain in business, I would have called their bluff. I would have said no and if the airline went out of business than so be it. Asking pilots to take a pay cut as a result of mismanagement is rediculous, unfortunately the pilots went for it.

The only problem I see with staying firm is that if the pilots refused to sign a contract and went on strike, the government would have made them go back to work because of the companies bankruptcy. When US Airways finally does go out, and it will, the pilots and F/A's are the losers. They took the cuts and will loose their jobs anyway.