SWAPA and SR361

[NYRANGERS]

I think it would be better for the SWAPA to get a better contract than to support working into your twilight years to make financial gains.

Come on SW get with it..........

 

[spinup]

I have a great deal of respect for SWA. You all deserve more for the jobs that you do. At some point SWAPA needs to step up to the plate and play a little hard ball.

The contracts you shoot for at SWA have their basis in current ALPA and APA contracts. SWAPA wants, as they should, comparitive industry compensation. I know now they have deferred due to timing. But I fully expect them to look to ALPA and APA for guidence when the time comes. Inversely, should SWAPA get a steller contract then ALPA and APA look to SWAPA. We are all in this together.

My point is that not only is your union responsible in house, but also industry wide.

Speculation, but possibly ALPA and APA's stand on the age 60 debate will give SWAPA the amunition it needs for industry standard retirement packages down the road, should the retirement age stand at 60. Push it to 65 and SWA may never see an A fund or B fund.

 

[xhercdriver]

Well, there's "what's right," and there's "what's right for me" I guess.

Pilots who function solely on the "what's right for me" philosophy will note, correctly, that, absent any huge growth period, what was previously a 4-6 year path to captain upgrade will now become an 8-10 year path, so this isn't just about having to work longer, it's about having to work longer as an F/O and then working the same number of years as a Captain that they would have previously in order to have the same number of "high dollar" years.

Not really much of a way to argue that point, because they're right: it does pretty negatively effect any F/O (to say nothing of poolies) who isn't pretty close to upgrading.

That said, the "what's right" crowd should have a pretty easy time just pointing out that there was really no provable justification for the rule in the first place. You don't keep a bad rule just because it's "always been that way." The principle behind the same law that forced all the major airlines to drop their "perfect 20/20 vision," rule that would have kept a lot of you from even being hired is supposed to also provide all Americans the right to keep their jobs without being arbitrarily forced to retire at any specific age. The age-60 or even age-65 rule is only defensible on the grounds that it is in the interest of public safety, (which has never been proven) not on the grounds that it's "unfair" to the pilots who'd potentially fill those slots. After all, you could be a Wal-Mart greeter too, if all those old codgers would just get over themselves and retire, right? Should they be forced to retire at 75 to make room for the 60-year old WM "poolies?"

So yeah, it may hurt you personally to see job vacancies you thought would be there evaporate, but you still have to ask, "what's right?"

 

[Full of LUV]

ISN'T THE REAL ISSUE AT SWAPA IS THAT IN THE ABSCENCE OF ANY COMPANY RETIREMENT MEDICAL COVERAGE, THEY ARE LEFT SOL IN RETIREMENT FROM 60 TO 65 UNTIL OLD MEDICARE KICKS IN AT 65? LETS CALL A SPADE A SPADE!
ALSO, HOW MANY PEOPLE HAVE HAD A GRANDPARENT WHO WAS LEGAL TO DRIVE, BUT YOU WOULDN'T SEND YOUR KIDS IN THE CAR WITH THEM TO THE CORNER STORE. IT IS VERY HARD TO EXPLAIN TO ANYONE THAT THEY ARE TOO OLD TO BE CONSISTENTLY COMPETENT, ESPECIALLY WHEN IT DEALS WITH THEIR LIVELIHOOD.

 

[dv01]

No age discrimination period! There has been no study supporting the allegation that airline pilots over 60 are any more or less safe then a pilot at age 35. "Statistics clearly show that General-Aviation pilots 60 to 69 years old have accidents at twice the rate of pilots 50 to 59 years old". (Commercial Aviation Safety page 105). I will underscore General-Aviation - not Airline Pilots! The general aviation community has no where near the training and recurrency requirments the airlines require to maintain proficiency, and should not be lumped into the same catagory. I feel that given the changes in the operational environment, the advances in medical understanding and technology, added with the stringent medical health standards required by the FAA and many times the carrier itself, require we take a new look at the madatory age limit of 65. The bottom line here is; if the law gets changed and pilots over 60 can pass their First Class Medical, they should have the Right to fly until 65.

 

[46Driver]

If it is a safety thing, then NOBODY should be able to fly past 60: not corporate, not cropdusters, not general aviation, not foreign airline pilots in our airspace. Of course this is not about safety, its about money. The majors have big pensions and want to retire with their tax exemption at age 60. Others making substantially less money would like to continue to work to have enough to retire on (having enough to retire with kind of puts a new spin on "GREED"). Of course, they should not change the Age 60 Rule because it is a "law" - as if laws aren't changed all the time. The only laws I know of written in stone are the 10 Commandments..... Maybe the majority wants Age 60, but that is why you have The Constitution and anti-discrimination laws: to protect the rights of the minority from the tyranny of the majority.

 

[spinup]

46Driver,

You clearly have absloutely no idea what pilots have given to this industry, and why. I strongly suggest you read Flying The Line part 1 and 2.

 

[46Driver]

2 points. One is arguable, that the hiring to a traditional major is going to be much more difficult in the future with the rise of both the discounters (Southwest, JetBlue, etc) and the regional airlines. A lot of pilots are never going to make it to the majors, and thus never have the big pensions. The other is fact: people are living substantially longer than in 1959 and thus you need to work longer to be able to retire.
You certainly have your right to an opinion, but I have yet to see you make an argument other than hold out for more money.

 

[spinup]

46Driver,

I'm really not sure how far you want to break this discussion down. It is not all about money, a large part of any unious drive is quality of life.

I understand that not everyone wants to work for a major airline, nor should they. This isn't about any one airline being better then the next.

What is important to understand is that contractual obligations implemented at the mainline level also have implications industry wide. I cannot even begin to cite the regulatory and safety driven regulations which have their origin with various unions. Some of these are quality of life issues which all 121 operators enjoy. Trip and Duty rigs have their start in the mainline level, and slowly they are becoming evident at the regionals. This is a great thing. The higher the bar is continually set, the better it is for everyone, not just at mainline. If you believe, as I do, that loss of a quality of life, or compensation, at the mainline level has a ripple effect throughout the industry, then you should realize the necesity of holding the bar where it is.

Please don't forget, I subsidized and supported the Comair strike as an ALPA member. I believed in their cause and applaud their attainment of a contract which IS changed the industry.

We are NOT overpaid in this profession. And I do NOT want to change the pattern bargining environment we have now thru the Railway Labor Act. It continually promotes safety and quality of life.

Realize however, that pilots do take the good with the bad. Just ask anyone who has been furloughed, down graded, or surplusses, then on top of that asked for concessions. If you combine surplusses and concessions, some pilots may see as much as a 40% reduction in wages. Pilots will do this because they want to protect their jobs, also because they believe in their airline, and want to correct poor management decisions. The sad thing is that after the pattern bargining in 2000, and 2001 most pilots were only able to bring the bar back to the level enjoyed in 1970's. 30 YEARS of work about to be wiped out with BK threats and Recovery Packages. Money is not something to fight for as you say. It is something we HAVE to fight for because that is the way union driven business is done. We all signed on for this.

We all need to hold onto what we can, because we are about to loose a lot. Nowhere in the industry is a new contract negotiated that doesn't heve wide ranging effect. I EXPECT the regional unions to promote quality of life, and safety issues. I EXPECT thoes negotiated issues to find their way into flying industry wide.

This is catagorically the wrong time to be promoting age 65 retirement. First, all contracts are going to be descimated at least in the short term thru concessions, we do NOT need to loose more. And yes, having to work 5 more years for your retirement is a loss. Second, there are over 7,000 pilots currently on the street looking for work, I will never support this amendment during times of furlough. Third, it will irrevocably lower the bar industry wide.

I understand the concern and the motivation some have in changing the retirement age, 401K. But you have to ask yourself, is this the best thing for the majority? what will the lasting effects be? Will this be a short term albatross to the industry or long term? I want to see better retirment packages at the regionals, and I WILL support thoes endevors thru my union. Increasing company contribution or adding pension programs are tangable programs with bennifits.

Please realize, that I do not only fight for rights at my airlne, but also for yours.

 

[46Driver]

I agree with most of what you said. Its the future of the industry where I differ that leads me to support the Age 65 - and you nailed it, 401K. Many people think this is just another downturn cycle - I am much more pessimistic and think it is a revolutionary change. RJ's, low cost carriers, internet ticketing, city travel banks, fractional ownership, and international alliances all converged at the same time to create carnage among the traditional majors. As strong as a union may be (and I thank you for your support), the economic pressure and vicious competition between companies is forcing salaries down, bankrupting airlines, and furloughing mainline pilots - I don't see those jobs coming back but rather an increasing reliance on a portfolio of cheaper regional carriers flying 50 and 70 seat RJ's. I sincerely hope you are right and I am wrong - I would much rather fly at a major - but I am preparing for the long haul at a solid regional. (They really got in depth on the mainboard in the thread about scope, unions, and RJ's.) If you can shred some of those arguments, that is good; I could use the positive waves......