I think you're still missing the point as to how mainline pilots (present & future) benefit.
Huh?
I understand it very well. I was the original mainline advocate for
Brand Scope at ALPA. Heck, even the RJDC knotheads acknowledge that.
How much higher on the totem pole would any given Delta pilot be if mgmt decided it was no longer cost effective to outsource any flying over 50 seats and brought it back inhouse?
A bit, but I think it'd be offset by the "
pull down effect". That's what would take place when the
next contract came up, and the DAL seniority list contained pilots making $250/hr
and pilots making $30/hr. Where do you think the "
pressure point" would be in that situation?
Would the rallying cry be, "
Get those widebody guys $300!!"? (a 20% raise) Or would it be "
Get those poor buggers at the bottom of the same list up to $50!!"? (a 67% rasie)
In situations where we've seen disparities on a mainline list in terms of pay...the pressure point has always been focused on pulling-up the lower end. At NWA in '98, the #1 contract objective was to end the B-scale...something that didn't impact the top 80% of the list.
How many NWA captains will find themselves downgraded into the right seat if NWA is able to park the DC9 fleet for outsourced airplanes?
About 200. We'll be hiring about twice that many to cover attrition over the next several months. The DC-9's will be here for awhile because they're paid for. That's a huge chunk of the equation and airline managements, as spectacularly stupid as they are,
are predictable when it comes to avoiding large capital costs.
And keep in mind, parking the DC-9 is not our issue. The replacement for it is. We have set the rates for the replacement aircraft already. Since we know our Marketing Department has no intention of abandoning that segment...there
will be a replacement, and it
will be flown by mainline pilots.
having strong scope at the regionals would address the other half, namely management's motivation for wanting to farm out the flying in the first place.
Agree. That's why I think it would be a good thing. Repeat: That's why I favor pursuing Brand Scope.
I also favor
sharing the costs to achieve it.
Hint: it's not simply that regional pilots are lined up begging to fly shiny jets for free. It's that every time they demand a fair wage, the flying can easily be taken away and given to a more "compliant" pilot group!
Are you suggesting that anytime a pilot group tries to take action to
improve the profession...there are other pilots willing to undercut them by doing the same flying for
less?
'member what Pogo said about that?