Hey I don't know if this should be a new thread or not, but by God I think the pilots may have finally won.
After being told by Guum (politely) to stick it out and trust him, followed by Barry Wilbur saying "if you don't like it leave", enough pilots have left Delta decided to pay industry leading compensation (not wages).
Date: Jan. 23, 2015
From: Ryan Gumm
To: Endeavor Pilot Team
Re: Pilot Retention Program – Enhancements
In November 2014, we announced an aggressive pilot retention program that was designed to stem pilot attrition and enhance pilot hiring in an effort to avoid further fleet reductions and to better position our airline to take on more flying in the future. To that end, we created the opportunity for financial incentive for pilots if they agreed to remain employed at Endeavor over a 24-month period.
This 24-month duration was initially designed, in part, to enhance pilot progression, and more specifically, the opportunity to upgrade to Captain more quickly - something the Company recognized as being very important to our current and future pilots. We have recently completed a more thorough analysis on upgrade progression - which is based on new assumptions that First Officer attrition is reduced to nine (9) per month, while hiring ten new pilots each month. From this analysis, we have concluded that, within the next 39 months, all of our current First Officers will have had the opportunity to upgrade to Captain, or to move to Delta under the recently announced FO SSP. This gives Endeavor an estimated three to four year projected upgrade timeline for new hire pilots today. This projection can be accelerated if we are able to reduce our attrition further and are able to hire more than ten pilots each month.
Based on these conservative assumptions, we have made the decision to extend the retention program an additional two (2) years in an effort to better match our upgrade timeline. We have also increased the potential retention payments from up to $15,000 to up to $20,000 annually for those pilots who remain employed and otherwise meet the eligibility requirements. Finally, in response to pilot feedback and our desire to maximize the success of this program in retaining pilots, we have taken the additional step of modifying the payment schedule to shorten the payment intervals by having three (3) separate periods each year. Please refer to and review the attached LOA 62 for a more detailed description of the program.
Please keep in mind that this is a significant commitment to not only our pilots, but also the airline as a whole and all of our employees. The increased retention payments I have just described provide Endeavor pilots who remain employed for the full duration of each retention period the opportunity to receive up to $80,000 in retention payments over the next 48 months. It is important to recognize how this extension demonstrates our confidence that Endeavor pilots will be offered a stable career advancement platform that rivals upgrade opportunities at any other regional airline by the end of the retention period. It is equally critical to understand this program was necessary to ensure job security and growth, which will benefit all Endeavor work groups, and enable us to retain more aircraft and position ourselves to seek out possible increased flying opportunities.
I want to thank ALPA leadership for working with the Company to reach this Tentative Agreement on amendments to the Pilot Retention Program. Both sides worked together, understanding that a stable pilot work force would be critical to the long term success of Endeavor and all of its employees. The Endeavor/ALPA MEC will have the opportunity to ratify this agreement next week, and we look forward to being able to move forward with the implementation of LOA 62.
Since our emergence from bankruptcy in 2013, we have been focused on creating a new type of regional airline; one that holds safety, operational reliability, and customer focus as the highest priorities. Endeavor is also committed to ensuring that our employees enjoy stability and opportunity by building a better airline; this “Pilot Retention Program” was designed with that goal in mind. As I have stated before, we recognize that the pilot shortage is a major challenge that Endeavor must overcome and Endeavor is not taking a back seat to the industry in addressing this issue. Endeavor remains engaged in not only solving this issue for the long-term, but has also taken very aggressive steps in order to shore up our short-term position. When a pilot asks, “Why I should choose Endeavor?” it’s simple;
·A culture founded on strong core values
·Stable career advancement opportunities
·Industry leading earnings potential for those who are committed to remaining employed at Endeavor
·Flying new state of the art aircraft
While we have encountered our share of challenges over the last few years, I am excited about the future. We have worked hard to transform our airline and now is the time when we will advance Endeavor to the front of the industry.
Thanks again,
----
Congrads to the Endeavor guys. Eat it Wilbur. Delta blew through whatever magic number they needed to have guys leave to cave to pilot demands- even though it was never going to happen because *mutters inadiably*. Of course they could shut it all down too, but at least for now, congrads! Sounds like new hire class might even be full for once.