Letter to Skywest Pilots

Bob Miller is DA MAN. He personally looked UPS in the eye and formed an in house union for the pilots at UPS. I kinda wanna give him a big fat sloppy kiss every time I see him, but I don't think he'd appreciate it.

I'm convinced that if it wasn't for my union, I wouldn't be sitting in the upper echelon of aviation careers, as we speak. When UPS started the airline in 88, they were considered a bottom feeder as far as a place to hang your hat. It ain't that way anymore, baby, and part of that is due to the IPA.

Every large pilot group can benefit from being organized. Pilots at Skywest will have to decide, on an individual basis, on whether or not they are better off with a union. I suggest that each Skywest guy look himself in the mirror and think about the future, and history, of the piloting career. Think about how unions have tried to give you more bang for your buck.

It ain't always perfect, but I'd say you are better off with, that without.....
 
That letter actually puts me off voting for ALPA. As does just about everything that the OC does.

Claims of inter-carrier pilot unity are mostly BS. If there were unity, there would be one national seniority list, and we'd all be paid per duty hour.

Despite all that, I'll still probably vote for it, but don't think for a second that it's because of anything ALPA or the OC said or did. All the pro-ALPA guys are lucky that how I feel doesn't play into my decisions much.
 
Today- I met with the MEC Chairman of FEDEX Dave Webb, along with Captain TonyC(our very own JC Member) and First Officer Clinton (can't remember his last name) former SKYW pilot. All three gentleman took the time out of their day to come and talk to our pilot group.

That means a lot in this day and age of time is money. It was a strong show of support from one pilot group, to another.

As I sat in the back on jumpseat ride to SLC at 6am, a Southwest Airlines Flight Attendant approached me with the big ad in the USA Today. Along with a BIG thiumbs up. She had very strong words of encouragement and support. It made me very proud to be apart of this pilot group for once. If for only a moment, we, Skywest pilots, were on a national platform, and people were listening.

After the flight, as I deplaned, the captain pulled me aside and said he had also read the article on the way up to SLC. He also had many words of encouragement and support.

Every pilot group in the country has shown their support for our organizing efforts. It dawns on me to say the least, that these so-called anti union professional pilots cannot ask themselves why so many are in support of a cause that has no direct effect on them?

As I left the Jazz Room in SLC to start my local trip out of SLC, I was asked for a ride on my jumpseat. I happily granted permission. On the ride over, I was speaking to my FO who has been at Skywest for 9 years. He is pro union, but has the same story. In some way or another, he feels we are far better off with it than without. I won't get into details of why he felt that way, however important the reasons may be.

I couldnt help but turn towards my new hire jumpseater who had yet to start IOE, and smile. As if to say, do you see the writing on the wall? Are you listening to what your peer of 9 years is telling you? I felt as though he was maybe understanding what he and I had to say, without going through the painstaking process of years of degradation.

His simple reply to us was, ALPA can't do anything for me. Followed by, if you two don't like it here, quit!

Ladies and Gentleman, that about sums up Skywest Airlines. This attitude doesn't just come from him, it comes from what he has learned in his short month with the company. To speak to his peers with no respect, and disregard for their foresight.

I ask of you guys and gals, young and old, listen to what your peers are telling you. The writing is on the wall, not only for this company, but for this profession. The time to take a stand is now.
 
mrivc211 said:
Today- I met with the MEC Chairman of FEDEX Dave Webb, along with Captain TonyC(our very own JC Member) and First Officer Clinton (can't remember his last name) former SKYW pilot. All three gentleman took the time out of their day to come and talk to our pilot group.

That means a lot in this day and age of time is money. It was a strong show of support from one pilot group, to another.

As I sat in the back on jumpseat ride to SLC at 6am, a Southwest Airlines Flight Attendant approached me with the big ad in the USA Today. Along with a BIG thiumbs up. She had very strong words of encouragement and support. It made me very proud to be apart of this pilot group for once. If for only a moment, we, Skywest pilots, were on a national platform, and people were listening.

After the flight, as I deplaned, the captain pulled me aside and said he had also read the article on the way up to SLC. He also had many words of encouragement and support.

Every pilot group in the country has shown their support for our organizing efforts. It dawns on me to say the least, that these so-called anti union professional pilots cannot ask themselves why so many are in support of a cause that has no direct effect on them?

As I left the Jazz Room in SLC to start my local trip out of SLC, I was asked for a ride on my jumpseat. I happily granted permission. On the ride over, I was speaking to my FO who has been at Skywest for 9 years. He is pro union, but has the same story. In some way or another, he feels we are far better off with it than without. I won't get into details of why he felt that way, however important the reasons may be.

I couldnt help but turn towards my new hire jumpseater who had yet to start IOE, and smile. As if to say, do you see the writing on the wall? Are you listening to what your peer of 9 years is telling you? I felt as though he was maybe understanding what he and I had to say, without going through the painstaking process of years of degradation.

His simple reply to us was, ALPA can't do anything for me. Followed by, if you two don't like it here, quit!

Ladies and Gentleman, that about sums up Skywest Airlines. This attitude doesn't just come from him, it comes from what he has learned in his short month with the company. To speak to his peers with no respect, and disregard for their foresight.

I ask of you guys and gals, young and old, listen to what your peers are telling you. The writing is on the wall, not only for this company, but for this profession. The time to take a stand is now.
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Great story. Sucks that the dude with one month of seniourty dares question you a captain and your FO with 9 years of experience.

Incidently, in 9 yrs. why hasn't the FO you flew with upgraded???

:confused:
 
I'm not an airline pilot, so this comes from an outsider's view...

The ALPA has agreed to massive pay-cuts and they have agreed to loss of benefits and retirement. Then, sit back and watch as mgmt takes huge bonuses and seem perplexed by the whole deal. :banghead:

I think that pilots are probably better off with a union than without, but geez, what gives with the ALPA leadership and voting? Is that the best they have to offer their members?
 
Wing_96 said:
I'm not an airline pilot, so this comes from an outsider's view...

The ALPA has agreed to massive pay-cuts and they have agreed to loss of benefits and retirement. Then, sit back and watch as mgmt takes huge bonuses and seem perplexed by the whole deal. :banghead:

I think that pilots are probably better off with a union than without, but geez, what gives with the ALPA leadership and voting? Is that the best they have to offer their members?
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Are you asking about ALPA national or individual ALPA units at different airlines.

There is a big difference!
 
I guess both.

Do airline pilots belong to both, or do you only belong to your airline's ALPA? I know American Airlines, for example, has their own union. Is their union a part of the national ALPA?
 
American has their own union...Southwest has their own as well.

All airlines that are in ALPA, (Continental, Expressjet, Mesaba, FedEx etc) have individual councils within.
 
The 9 year FO used to be captain on the Jet but had to downgrade due to a divorce issue, having to need more time for the kids. He works 8-9 days per month now. AND still wants ALPA! Think about that for a minute.
 
Wing_96 said:
I'm not an airline pilot, so this comes from an outsider's view...

The ALPA has agreed to massive pay-cuts and they have agreed to loss of benefits and retirement. Then, sit back and watch as mgmt takes huge bonuses and seem perplexed by the whole deal. :banghead:

I think that pilots are probably better off with a union than without, but geez, what gives with the ALPA leadership and voting? Is that the best they have to offer their members?
Click to expand...

Most of the recent give-backs were forced on the unions. Northwest was beaten down in bankruptcy court, same with Mesaba, United and US Airways. Delta went through the ringer, and they agreed to a cut back in 2001 b/c they knew they wouldn't be able to strike thanks to who was currently in the White House. That cut, which was supposed to save them, later lead to even deeper cuts forced on them by bankruptcy. Other airlines (like ASA, Pinnacle and Champion) have been in negotiations for YEARS trying to get better contracts. Thanks to the way the RLA works, we're slowly losing buying power and disposable income while working for 2004-5 wages while management reaps the benefits of cheaper labor. There's no incentive (beyond the veiled threat of a retropay agreement) to get management to agree to a contract in a timely manner. The recent ASA TA has some major improvements over their last contract, and I expect the same to happen here at Pinnacle. Look for similar results at places like Mesa, Continental and Alaska as their contracts come into negotiations.

It's more than just "the union agreed to it" when you take the pay cuts and pension cuts into account. You have to look at the whole picture and ask "why did they agree to it?" You'll find the alternatives were FAR worse, like a crappy contract forced on them by a bankruptcy court with no legal recourse.
 
The date/location of the Skywest/ALPA Meet and Greet was actually publicized by the chief pilot in SLC, so you know Southernjets is behind ya too, bro!
 
Wing_96 said:
I know American Airlines, for example, has their own union. Is their union a part of the national ALPA?
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The APA (Allied Pilots Association) is in NO way affiliated with ALPA. The APA was born from the American pilots leaving ALPA. They are completely independant.
 
Doug Taylor said:
The date/location of the Skywest/ALPA Meet and Greet was actually publicized by the chief pilot in SLC, so you know Southernjets is behind ya too, bro!
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The Southernjets ALPA Executive Vice President, Michael Geer, has been very involved in the Skywest campaign. I worked a few events with him out in SLC. I've talked with several other DAL MEC guys that are very much behind the Skywest pilots.
 
kellwolf said:
Most of the recent give-backs were forced on the unions. Northwest was beaten down in bankruptcy court, same with Mesaba, United and US Airways. Delta went through the ringer, and they agreed to a cut back in 2001 b/c they knew they wouldn't be able to strike thanks to who was currently in the White House. That cut, which was supposed to save them, later lead to even deeper cuts forced on them by bankruptcy. Other airlines (like ASA, Pinnacle and Champion) have been in negotiations for YEARS trying to get better contracts. Thanks to the way the RLA works, we're slowly losing buying power and disposable income while working for 2004-5 wages while management reaps the benefits of cheaper labor. There's no incentive (beyond the veiled threat of a retropay agreement) to get management to agree to a contract in a timely manner. The recent ASA TA has some major improvements over their last contract, and I expect the same to happen here at Pinnacle. Look for similar results at places like Mesa, Continental and Alaska as their contracts come into negotiations.

It's more than just "the union agreed to it" when you take the pay cuts and pension cuts into account. You have to look at the whole picture and ask "why did they agree to it?" You'll find the alternatives were FAR worse, like a crappy contract forced on them by a bankruptcy court with no legal recourse.
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So, if they can't strike, which seems like it would be ideal, why don't they just quit? In any other industry (it seems), if you are getting screwed at your job, you quit and go get another one. I realize it's not quite this simple because of senority, and other things I don't know about, but man, it seems like it should be that simple.

When the excutives at United (and AA too?) took their bonuses after hosing the employees out of wages and benefits, I thought all the pilots should have walked that day. I didn't realize at the time that pilots can't strike whenever they like...but that is part of the problem IMO, don't y'all think? It seems to me, like the contracts are too restrictive in terms of protecting your rights, pay, benefits, etc... Plus, to know that the White House (regardless of who's in it) has the authority to tell the pilots that they have to work is way too big gov't for me.

It just seems to me that the unions have not provided enough flexibility and protection to their members. Again, I'm an outsider looking in.

I do not like the lesser of two evils logic when it comes to pay-cuts and benefits. What if the airline mgmt wanted more pay-cuts? More benefit cuts? For example, new FO's only make $20K/year now, so I guess they would be willing to except $10K/year because it is better than not working? That is ridiculous...it's ridiculous because pilots agree to that crap.

We need to be more like professional athletes (not by fighting dogs and using steroids) because they always look for more. When one QB gets a $10 million contract, the next QB doesn't say, "I'll do it for $6 million," but quite the contrary. The next QB says I want $12 million. We need to be like that. We need to stop accepting pay that is just insulting, and start demanding what we are worth. And just like athletes, some pilots are worth more than others, but I don't think any career pilot should be at the poverty level.
 
Wing, the reason we as commerical airline pilots just can't 'walk off the job' is the Railway Labor Act.

Highly illegal to just walk away.

If you want to get in a career in aviation, don't attack the union. Volunteer, help out with the union and make it better, for YOU.
 
Wing_96 said:
I realize it's not quite this simple because of senority, and other things I don't know about, but man, it seems like it should be that simple.
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Yes, it should be that simple, but of course, it's not. The RLA and bankruptcy laws are so tilted in favor of management that labor is virtually crippled. ALPA is working to fix this. Captain Prater gave testimony last month in front of Congress on the issue of bankruptcy reform, and we have a sympathetic Democratic Congress on this issue, so some improvements might be possible in the next few years before bankruptcy becomes an issue for us again. But ALPA needs help on this, guys. If you're an ALPA member, you need to contribute to the PAC. Even if you can just give a few dollars a month, at least you're participating. The more members that participate, the more weight that ALPA can throw around on Capital Hill.
 
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