Thank you ExpressJet. You set a good example.

[Alchemy]

Parting shots:

It's very sad seeing how far XE has gone down the tubes since I was a newhire in '04. It has been a slow and steady decline thanks to a combination of mismanagement, bad unionism, and greed on the part of the company formerly know as "Houstonjets Ina'nashnul". I jumpseated home on American Eagle tonight (because they F-C shuttle "guards" at ORD would not let me on the bus without entering a "code" or showing them a boarding pass, causing me to miss my deadhead) and it reminded of what XE used to be like. What a huge difference walking across that bridge from the F to G concourse in ORD makes. I hope Eagle never gets spun off.

As we all know, the ORD UAX ramp is a disgrace to aviation. How fitting that I ended my career there by waiting 10 mintues for a fuel truck to un-block our gate after being told "gate's open!", then asked by ramp control "uh dur, you didn't go past ur gate did-ja?" (guess I should've just parked my happy @ss on taxiway A until they got their crap together). It's hard enough to find the J-lines at the end of the F pier without a smattering of ground equipment strewn about haphazardly. Thankfully I can now take a deep breath and say "NEVER AGAIN". Hallelujah, amen. Best of luck to those of you headed into that morass *cough*jtrain*cough*.

 

[IrishSheepdog]

Hey look! Travel benefits are NOT a negotiated benefit, therefore should not be considered "compensation." Go figure!

Now kids, let's remember this as we get into contract negotiations, OK?

 

[ChasenSFO]

I believe that this is the same benefit we get.

$50 per year per eligible passrider up to a max of $200. Segment fees only seem to apply for upgrades and companions (buddy pass).

Bob

That's good! I remember reading about the fees on Skynet last year, then jumpseaters from Mesa, Shuttle America, Gojet, and Trans States complaining about it to me at work, so I thought Skywest was the only one getting a "free" ride on UA. Maybe they finally did away with that stupid crap.

Over all UA has a pretty decent program other than the segment fees, which I guess aren't an issue. What's cool though is on CO we are priority "SA4X" or something, and I was told this means that we get on before CO/UA buddy passes. On UA, we get on AFTER buddy passes. This makes a huge, huge difference on full flights as buddies often make up the bulk of standby lists. Hopefully after the merger they improve the UAX priority.

I hope Eagle never gets spun off.

I think AMR has been trying to sell Eagle for a couple years now, but I've never read anything about anyone taking interest.

 

[jtrain609]

Hey look! Travel benefits are NOT a negotiated benefit, therefore should not be considered "compensation." Go figure!

Now kids, let's remember this as we get into contract negotiations, OK?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third-party_beneficiary

 

[surreal1221]

Hey look! Travel benefits are NOT a negotiated benefit, therefore should not be considered "compensation." Go figure!

Now kids, let's remember this as we get into contract negotiations, OK?

Exactly!

I have always held the position that each individual pilot should determine if they want to take part in said "benefits" or if they would rather take part in having travel benefits removed from their overall "compensation" package, and thus, receive a larger annual income instead of some sort of cheap ass pass benefits that can disappear any day.

 

[IrishSheepdog]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third-party_beneficiary

Uh, what?

 

[L-16B]

Being at colgan since first part of 2008 on the Continental side we have always been SA5's, and it looks like we are SA4's now. I always wondered how Cal can have different pass benefits for different regionals that fly for them. Glad to see they are all the same now. I have been giving the jetlink guys in my crashpad (all badass guys btw) a tough time about their new travel benefits though, and it really seems to get under their skin. I remember coming back from Hawaii last year I got bumped by an Expressjet flight attendant's travel companion. Seriously. Glad to see they didn't have to suffer being an SA5 like we have been (with resetting seniority every year). What I don't get is people that believe they should get on before a Cal employee on their own flight. Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't Expressjet operating under a CPA? If every seat is bought out, Cal can do what they want to with them as they like, as it's their seats. Then again my commute is jumpseat or bust, so I've never once listed for a seat in the back as they are utterly useless.

 

[surreal1221]

From what I understand, a lot of this stems from the fact that these guys were previously a wholly-owned, then was spun off to generate cash flow into CAL, only to end up getting the shaft from the big company.

Plus honestly, it's a sham if companies can just change our compensation package like this. Perhaps this is a lesson to be learned. Time to buckle up come section 6 for all FFD partner companies. Hearing some of the numbers being tossed around (sure some being inflated), but those vacation / travel vouchers have a dollar value that crews were expecting to be able to utilize at some point in their life. Some of these guys had 20, if not more, of these vouchers (or passes - whatever they want to call them) with a substantial cash value to some folks who are now - if they want to travel on CAL, and actually ENJOY the experience - they'll end up spending out the ass. For what was once considered a benefit of employment. Now it means nothing, and I don't blame these guys are being pissed and willing to explode over it.

Either get these guys full compensation for the lost passes - or get these guys' passes back.

More importantly, ASA/XJT pilot groups need to buckle down hard for the JCBA. Atlantic Southeast guys need to be paying VERY close attention to how our management team handles this.

 

[L-16B]

From what I understand, a lot of this stems from the fact that these guys were previously a wholly-owned, then was spun off to generate cash flow into CAL, only to end up getting the shaft from the big company.

Plus honestly, it's a sham if companies can just change our compensation package like this. Perhaps this is a lesson to be learned. Time to buckle up come section 6 for all FFD partner companies.

More importantly, ASA/XJT pilot groups need to buckle down hard for the JCBA. Atlantic Southeast guys need to be paying VERY close attention to how our management team handles this.

Hmm good points, but I don't view travel benefits as any type of compensation as all. Not worth one freaking penny to me. I see them as a way to get to work, and like I said I always jumpseat, never nonrev. I really hope Expressjet/ASA doesn't look at travel benefits as compensation....

 

[surreal1221]

Hmm good points, but I don't view travel benefits as any type of compensation as all. Not worth one freaking penny to me. I see them as a way to get to work, and like I said I always jumpseat, never nonrev. I really hope Expressjet/ASA doesn't look at travel benefits as compensation....

I'm the same way actually.

They hold LITTLE value to ME, personally.

However, our MANAGEMENT TEAMS and finance gurus, consider them part of our compensation package. Hence the issue.

We, on an individual basis, may not view them too significantly. But when our leadership thinks they can pay us $35 an hour instead of $50 an hour because they are getting us travel benefits on our mainline partner's metal...and then they have little defense to actually KEEPING said benefit, what happens when they are gone? Shouldn't that slice of the compensation package be filled in with something else? Be it an increase in hourly wage, decrease in medical benefit costs, something else?

I think so.

Otherwise, that previously completed compensation package at 100% (generic breakdown here: 65% WAGES, 20% travel benefits, 15% health benefits etc.). Now these guys are without a significant portion of their previously thought of compensation package. They expect that 20% to be made whole, somehow. And I don't blame them for going after it.

I'm pretty sure all of us expect a full compensation package if our wages are only making up 65% percent of said package.

Disclaimer: Percentage values are generic for example purposes.

 

[liveupthere]

What are Expressjet/ASA's benefits like when it comes to jumpseating?

 

[Captain_Bob]

What are Expressjet/ASA's benefits like when it comes to jumpseating?

Pretty much the same as everyone else in the industry... CASS authorized upfront of any other carrier we have a reciprocal agreement with. If seats are available in back... then we get those first before the flightdeck JS.

Bob

 

[Screaming_Emu]

I believe that this is the same benefit we get.

$50 per year per eligible passrider up to a max of $200. Segment fees only seem to apply for upgrades and companions (buddy pass).

Bob

Same over here at Acey. Methinks this is more of skywest trying to make their peoples feel specialer.

I'd also like to electronically fistbump a few jetlinkers. I was flying out of IAD (according to my friend, the Romanian word for hell) on Monday night when we had that freezing rain awesomeness come through. Deicing in IAD was an absolute clusterfornication. We were all instructed to board and wait for ops to tell us when we have a deice slot and were cleared to push. Even after asking repeatedly, not a single plane was given even a guess on how long it might take. We sat at the hater for an hour and a half with the door open.

Meanwhile some xjt planes were doing the sane with the door closed. Operations requested a few times to recycle the door so they could "reset the clock" on the 3 hour limit. Each time the crews refused. Props to you guys for standing your ground. When it comes to rules, I'm very much a spirit of the rule guy instead of "well technically...". The way the rule gives no flexibility is pretty dumb, but it was written because a lot of people decided they didnt like sitting on airplanes that weren't moving for 3 hours. Not because they were upset that the door remained latched. I believe both flights deplaned at least once before canceling.

That and there's the pay aspect that I can stand behind too. I haven't met a jetlinker that hasn't seemed like they had their head on straight. I'm looking forward to working with you guys!

 

[SeanD]

In ORD, they make you deice with the brakes set at the gate. I know I havent really been doing this long enough to have a dog in this fight, however the ramp at ORD is a complete joke. Someone should get some pictures of them congregating in that area near E and F on any given day to smoke and shoot the crap while airplanes line up for marshaling. Those who do ORD know what I'm talking about. XJT FAs flying the UAX side do not get any JS agreement at all. Ive heard some of the CAs might make an exception from time to time.

 

[O&M]

CAL employees & family members can bump XJT employees on our own metal due to CAL keeping SA3XX on us but we are SA4XX on them. We are simply looking for reciprocity. If we are SA4 on them, then they should be SA4 on us... or bump us to SA3 on them.

It may be "your metal," but that metal wouldn't be flying if Continental wasn't paying the bill. Seems only fair that CAL get higher boarding priority.

 

[L-16B]

It may be "your metal," but that metal wouldn't be flying if Continental wasn't paying the bill. Seems only fair that CAL get higher boarding priority.

Hmm this one is tough... I don't agree with you to some extent. For any CPA, I have no problem with mainline getting on first in the back, they own every seat and can do as they please. However, if Expressjet is doing flying at risk, then by all means it should be Expressjet employees first...

 

[SoCalAprch]

Never used CAL bennies, how does their international stuff work? Every time I think about using them I think it's stupid that I have to pay to list myself when I don't even know if we're going to make the flight and end up using Airways or Delta.