runfast said:
since i actually know this guy who passed on the FEDEX offer (he was in my wedding), i thought i would clarify.....
his wife certainly was/is no factor...
money was/is not a factor...
he simply loves SWA, and couldn't go back to flying night freight....
not a choice I would have made, and it certainly didn't helped my chances of getting a sponsor, but it is what it is and everyone makes choices based on their own circumstances and experiences.
i wonder if anyone on this thread has ever actually FLOWN for SWA then left and went to FEDEX ....thats who's opinion i would like to hear.
Well: I can come close. My primary sponsor at FedEx worked at SW for a couple months after IOE and then left for FedEx. That wasn't his plan, it is just the way it worked out. He took the job at SW and later got the offer from FedEx.
When asked he said (and reminds me often, since I was in the pool at SW over 2 years and turned down a class date since I had been here a year and a half) that he could work less and make more money at FedEx. Those were his words almost verbatim.
That is simply one perspective and I can respect that. There is much more to life than money, but it IS a JOB and the primary goal should be to provide for the family and have as much time with them as you can.
Living in Memphis and standing reserve (when staffing is sufficient) is an outstanding way to spend a lot of time with your family and make decent money at FedEx. Its not for everybody, but it can be a fairly good JOB.
Not the tremendous job that management wants us to believe everybody would kill their mother to have, just a pretty good job with decent benefits. Nothing more, nothing less.
I personally think it is short sighted to dismiss the FedEx OPTION, but I can certainly understand why some would prefer domestic day flying over SOME of the flying we do at FedEx.
I also have no problem with somebody taking the time to apply, getting the interview and eventual job offer turning it down either. That is the purpose of an interview after all, for both parties to determine if they are a good fit. That slot is still available for somebody who really wants it, and that individual and his family will be much happier (hopefully) in the long run.
I can think of several reasons why I wanted to go to SW instead of FedEx, the timing just worked out the other way for me. I wouldn't begrudge anybody having a choice to make and making the best one for them and their family. After all, its just business and the company would have had no problem telling you no thanks after a year or more in the pool if there was a downturn in the industry.
Live and let live.
FJ