I'm so sick of hearing, "get your time and get out," that it's a "stepping stone," and so on. So what? Why should we be content with getting screwed at every turn, just because we think we'll get out in just a couple of years? I see a lot of the guys I fly with who have been here many years, trying to get out.
The majors aren't hiring like they used to, and you're going to be here a number of years unless you want to just hop to yet another regional. (We had a few bail to Colgan Air a few months ago, that's how bad it has gotten.) If everybody has the attitude that it's not worth the effort to fight for improvements in our pay and work rules, then of course things won't improve!
They're not going to shut down just because we unionize. Paying us adequately is not going to bankrupt the company. The most profitable airline in the country is also the one that pays its people very well, remember? They reap the rewards of treating their people like an asset instead of an expense. I hear this place used to be like that; I wonder what changed?
And those of you who bitch about how useless ALPA is, you have work rules and benefits that we can only dream of, and you have them because of your union contract. Remember that. Your situation would be a lot worse without your contract.
No, we're not at the top-end of 1900 operators anymore. We haven't been at the top of the heap in years. Yes, we used to be the top-end operator of these airplanes -- you could make over $60,000 flying a 1900 for us in the early 90's. Those days will never return, and we all know it.
Yes, the 82.5-hour guarantee is higher than other airlines, but nearly everything else is worse. And don't forget that we have no assurance of keeping that monthly guarantee! It could drop down to the typical 75 hours, or even be eliminated. So could our daily minimum of 3 hours. So could the 2-hour reserve callout, or any of our other arbitrary work rules.
We have no power to stop these things without a binding contract! Just like we had no power to stop the elimination of our paid health insurance, or the on-time bonus I keep hearing about, or the profit sharing I've heard about, etc., etc. Don't say they wouldn't do that -- they did it. Who's to say they won't do it again?
I knew the pay when I got here, but I never realized just how bad it could be, living in expensive New England on a salary that's only adequate for Plattsburgh. It's great for the 20 people based up there, but the other 80% of the company is struggling to make ends meet. The annual "raise" doesn't come close to offsetting the rising cost of living, and demanding even more money for the mediocre medical insurance was just too much. And now that they're finally thinking about CASS, they want to charge us for it? Good lord, where does it end?
I wish I had been here for the last union vote -- I'd be working under a contract by now. I wouldn't be paying $1350 a year for a medical plan that used to be part of our package. Indeed, even subtracting out 1.95% for ALPA dues (about $350/year), that still leaves me $1000 ahead, even without the pay improvements that I'm sure we'd have been able to negotate.
I hear rumors of a new campaign starting up; I sure hope it's true. Maybe it'll light a fire under our management and owners to wake up and look at what the rest of the industry is paying its pilots. This is a very big reason why you're having trouble finding qualified applicants.
If the Saab/Dash/Whatever pay is as bad as our Beech pay, I think we're going to see another mass exodus, and training whatever replacements we can find must be very expensive. Wouldn't it be cheaper to pay people enough to stay?
I don't want to job hunt again, but I seriously can't afford to live on what CommutAir pays.
