So everything is based on longevity?
MCDU - longevity is used for what you get within you own airline, relative to the other pilots at that airline. If you are a junior Captain and your airline merges with another, you still remain a junior Captain, no matter how long you or your seniority-list-neighbor from the other airline have been at your jobs. The word there is seniority list, not longevity list. THAT is what longevity is about - and that is not a 'spin for personal gain'.
HAL
Exactly. And a perfect example of this is what happened to an old college friend of mine who got hired at USAir in 1987 way before any of the mergers, either the PSA/Piedmont USAir 3 way merge in the late 80's early 90's or the more recent one with AWA.
T never got furloughed since hiring on at USAir in 1987, nor did he ever upgrade to Captain in all his time with
his airline, although he could held F28 captain in the early 90's. However ,he chose not to because he didn't like the short haul nature of the flying that the airplane did . His choice, I guess. But I would have played that hand a little differently.
After 2 trips thru BK court, all the furloughs , displacements loss of pension salaries etc. he wound up 60 from the bottom on his own senority list ,a B737 reserve F/O out of CLT.
Now ask yourself 2 questions. Did my friend have
longevity at his own original airline ?Absolutely without a doubt. Did that longevity at his own original airline buy him a senior position at his own airline ? In other words
did he have seniority at his own original airline prior to the merger ?
Not by a long shot. Even though T got hired at USAIr in 1987 and was never furloughed, the best that
longevity date got for him was a very junior positon on his own stand alone
seniority list,which is admittedly better than being furloughed outright.
So now the prevailing wisdom on the east side is that T and others like him should leapfrog over guys like my crashpad roomate L who hired on at AWA in 1988 who until recently was a Line holding 757 Capt flying our Hawaii trips until getting displaced to senior A320 Capt with our recent cutbacks, and whose name can be found on the AWA Pilot Seniority list ( a totally different distinct and seperate list than the one my friend T's name can be found on , I mighgt add. )
Until the east pilots of this airline realize that
longevity does not a senior pilot make, and that
there is nothing you can do to change that fact maybe we can move on to more important issues like contact improvements and pay raises that will benefit all USAIRways pilots ,east and west; regardless of where you are on the combined list .
Be very thankful you got recalled to Hawaiian ...
very thankful.
PHXFLYR
