Glucose,
Your post should wake some people up. While some are busy focused on playground antics the company just put one across the bow with a very poor opening offer on compensation. I think one thing that should be of grave concern at US is the insurance.
Seems they wish to completely eliminate the 100% and 90% option. This might be fine for a single, young healthy person that has never been to the hospital. However, what is the youngest flight attendant you have? How many are single having never been married or least have children? I am aware that there are a few thirty somethings out there, but think it is safe to assume a majority are forty and up. At that age is when you have to get pokes and prods you did not have to get before. You may just have those accident prone teen children that break something every year. I think taking away the 100% and 90% options is not an option for a lot of people. I think the extra premium you pay for having the higher option more than covers itself in a year. So they want to now take that away and increase deductions and copay for you. Wait, there is more, don't forget you are making the same as you have been for the last decade. Seems even with that magical ten dollars that everyone was talking about won't even make up for the increase in insurance with a decrease in benefits. Now that is not even on the horizon. You now also have to pay 20% of that major unexpected surgery. Don't worry though when you recover you can pick up those extra trips on your day off.
This is where Travelpro does make a point. There are people in Charlotte that do care about the local election. The person that is going to be in that office elects and supports the Negotiators that you have that closed some sections on your contract without listening to the people they supposedly represent. Debating about the people that are on the ballot is healthy to a point. Don't fixate on it though or a tactical nuke strike might be next from the company. I still think you need to know something about everyone on the ballot, but nobody seems to know that either. I think there is justification to ask questions about what a person that is presently there has done. The answers may be subjective but it will come down to who best represents you individually. Don't make it about the least of the two evils. Ask question to all candidates on the ballot. There may or may not be a better answer.
My parting thought is this. Do you think Mr. Flores closed out the reserve section with little debate hoping the company would budge a little on compensation? It seems pretty fair to say he was not listening then, will he start listening now?
Spot On.
If I might add this to the discussion: Insurance is always going to be an issue going forward. All one has to do look back at what has transpired in this country the last year. What is scary: SCOPE and the erosion of ALL protections and work rules. Management wants to treat these contract as if they were pertaining to office or factory workers. Glamor has long left the equation for this work group but a Flight crew's work environment is unique. It needs to handled and negotiated as such. The shear fact there is need to have food banks for pilots and flight attendants is unconscionable. Or perhaps a feather in the cap of management.
The company (i.e. the management team) is only looking for ways to effectively implement items that make us attractive to a merger partner. Nothing wrong there except this: All of the concessions have been on the back of the employees and all of the economic gain has only gone to those at the top.
Do you think Kelleher and Kelly at SWA make decisions at their company that makes them look better as a merger partner? At the detriment of their employees? Or does he put his BIG BOY pants on and does what is in the best interest of SWA and manages THEIR airline? Really think about that.
This merger US/HP ONLY took place because the prior management had to get the East labor costs down to the level of that of our West counterparts or there would not have been a merger. Period.
AWA labor costs, whether your in denial or not, were and still are THE LOWEST IN THE INDUSTRY.
So now Parker says he needs us to keep labor costs low to stay competitive. So we are attractive to merger partners. What was his compensation package again? Lowest in the industry? Lead by Example? Anything about protracted labor disputes going on five years?
Yet, after experiencing the benefit and economic advantage of having the lowest labor cost of any airline, they can only show a profit thats proportional to our ancillary fees (which are the highest in the industry and passengers despise).
The company problem isn't a LABOR COST ISSUE - It's a MANAGEMENT ISSUE.
Getting the employees to make concessions only makes it easier for them NOT to do effectively what they are being (highly) compensated to do - run an airline. I don't want to hear how we are number one on on time when we pad the hell out of our flight times. The public isn't fooled by it either.
We have some major issues going forward - namely our management team. And CHAOS isn't going to fix that. This management has total disdain for it's employees unless they are drinking the Kool-Aid. I have said it before and Ill say it again: Parker is just another Frank Lorenzo with a slightly different rap.
Also consider this regarding Chaos: When F/As in CLT realize that if their flight is called to be a CHAOS flight - they are unemployed.
I dare say you will see a wave of green shirts rolling over faster than Obama on tax cuts for the wealthy. Think I am wrong? I hope I am....but I doubt it.
It time to embrace solidarity East and West. Section 6 was a good move and perhaps kick in a "VOTE OF NO CONFIDENCE" for our management then let the games begin. Let's get through the election in CLT and support and hold accountable the elected leader. Good Luck to us all....we are going to need it.
