Not since BK have they been free! One of the reasons I left UA Customer Service was pass charges cost me more than flying on WN or DL. My wife and child flew over Christmas, bought tickets on DL, (as UA doesn't fly where she needed to go) and that was one of the final nails.
With two paycuts I was making less than my wife made working for a discount store chain. I spent eight years with UA and miss the people, not the job. I miss the customers, not the pay. I miss the knowledge that I could get on a plane, not that I did get on a plane frequently after the cost was raised. When we flew to a funeral it cost us $80.00 (+) round tirp per person, (all three of us). We could have flown WN non-stop for $50 per person on standby.
The reason you should take the job is not based upon the flight benefits, but based upon what you will be expected to do, 5days a week, 52 weeks per year for what will be just barely above minimum wage after the BK judge rules. If you have a true desire to help people, then it may be the job for you. As a Passenger Contact Employee you will be expected to do many tasks, that include but not limited to, assisting customers with travel reservations, booking, changing reservations, assisting customers with reroutes due to weather, mechanical or oversales. You will be expected to treat each customer with respect no matter how much they yell and curse you out without raising your voice at them because they pay the bills.
You will be expected to deal fairly with all customers, but give preferential treatment to the elite flyers, (who are the ones who contribute the most to the comanies bottom line). You will have to tell the 72 year old grandmother that United will not pay for a hotel and she will have to stay the night in the airport becuase she missed her flight, but her luggage with heart medicine made the flight.
You will be expected to (depending upon station status) load and unload freight, bags, mail and other cargo. You will have to dump the lavs, (not fun but if done right you will never dump on yourself). You will be expected to lift bags that weigh upto 100lbs, (anything over should be freight). You will be expected to work nights, weekends holidays, stay until the last flight has arrived. You will be required to drive equipment safely around multimillion dollar aircraft without causing an accident.
You will be required to do all this and any other item your local manager may deem part of your duty. If you have good station management you will see them seven days a week. I didn't see anyone in my station management team for the last nine months I worked for the airline.
You will work hard for next to nothing after you pay union dues, insurance, and taxes. If you are fortunate enough to have good management you will enjoy your job, if you don't well I think you can figure it out. If you are careful you can do the right thing by the customer but get a write-up in your file becuase you went to far in treating the customer fair. Or your service director will yell at you infront of other customers because you followed company policy but broke their policy.
UA is great! There are many wonderful people at the company, but I wasn't lucky enough to be in a city with great management. I did get to go on a special assignment once for two weeks and saw first hand what good management was. I figured if I could survive long enough our manager would retire and the new manager would be better. But in the end I had to leave UA becuase of the pay cuts and my strong desire not to live/work in Chicago.
Whatever you choose, good luck.
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