AA Mechanics in Europe

[Bob Owens]

A few questions for our fellow Mechanics in Europe.
What is your hourly rate?
How much paid time off do you get?
Vacation (Holiday)?
Holidays (Bank Holidays)?
What rate are you paid when you work the bank holiday?
Sick Time per year?
What is the rate of OT?
Do you have double time?
How much 'IOD time" for an injury suffered on duty do you get?
How much out of pocket medical do you pay?
How much out of pocket Dental do you pay?
Are your uniforms paid for and cleaned by the company?
Are your work shoes paid for by the company?
What type of pension do you have and what can you expect per month @ age 65 with 30 years with the company?

I recall talking to a London based mechanic several years ago and they made the equivelant of around $20k more than us per year. The reason why they got so much was because London was such an expensive place to live, however according to this list from Mercers London is now cheaper than New York. If AA can pay it's mechanics a higher wage in Paris and London because they are so expensive and they give their managers a cost of living increase when they relocate to a high cost city then they shouldnt balk when we demand the same consideration.

The world's most expensive big cities.

(The index is based on cost of living in US dollars. If the dollar weakens against the local currency of a city, the city becomes more expensive and moves up the index, even if prices expressed in local currency remain the same or even go down.)
2009
Rank City Country
1 Tokyo Japan
2 Osaka Japan
3 Moscow Russia
4 Geneva Switzerland
5 Hong Kong Hong Kong
6 Zurich Switzerland
7 Copenhagen Denmark
8 New York City USA
9 Beijing China
10 Singapore Singapore
11 Milan Italy
12 Shanghai China
13 Paris France
14 Oslo Norway
15 Caracas Venezuela
16 London UK
17 Tel Aviv Israel
18 Rome Italy
19 Helsinki Finland
20 Dubai
21 Vienna Austria
22 Shenzhen China
23 Los Angeles USA
23 Guangzhou China
25 Dublin Ireland

 

[eolesen]

they give their managers a cost of living increase when they relocate to a high cost city

Now *that's* funny... Doesn't happen from experience, but that might detract from your argument.

 

[limit]

This is readily available on jetnet.Go to the specific Europe sites and look for compensation and benefits at the station pages there.Its buried in there somewhere.We have looked in the recent past and all is there in great detail.At least it was there at the time.

 

[Bob Owens]

Now *that's* funny... Doesn't happen from experience, but that might detract from your argument.

Maybe they only offer it to the managers they want to keep.

 

[joanne]

Maybe they only offer it to the managers they want to keep.

"O U C H " !!


joanne

 

[eolesen]

According to y'all, don't they want to keep every manager because it's just a good ol' boys club? Fact is, if they don't want to keep a manager, they don't move them into a job across country. They simply tell them they're going to let them "pursue other interests" on a Friday afternoon...

Last time I looked it up in 2005 or 2006, it was spelled out pretty clearly in Regs that management doesn't get exception raises based on cost of living. You might get a lateral raise or a promotion raise (which I explained in another thread a few weeks ago), but how much that raise is isn't tied to geography -- someone moving from TUL to JFK would be eligible for the same percentage increase as someone of equal compensation moving from JFK to TUL.


Since the answers to the original questions asked are apparently posted on Jetnet, how 'bout sharing the results so we can all see what you're demanding parity on?

Or is it more a case that the facts show that to match the European A&P's you'd wind up losing out?

 

[Bob Owens]

This is readily available on jetnet.Go to the specific Europe sites and look for compensation and benefits at the station pages there.Its buried in there somewhere.We have looked in the recent past and all is there in great detail.At least it was there at the time.

Couldnt find it, maybe access is restricted to company computers.

 

[Buckky]

Couldnt find it, maybe access is restricted to company computers.

In Euro's

9732
MECHANIC LINE (2 LIC)
2,953 min
3,574
4,194
4,814
5,434 max

7569
LEAD TECH ACFT MNTC
3,824 min
4,288
4,752
5,216
5,680 max

9722
CREW CHIEF MECH LINE
3,824 min
4,288
4,752
5,216
5,680 max

 

[limit]

In Euro's

9732
MECHANIC LINE (2 LIC)
2,953 min
3,574
4,194
4,814
5,434 max

7569
LEAD TECH ACFT MNTC
3,824 min
4,288
4,752
5,216
5,680 max

9722
CREW CHIEF MECH LINE
3,824 min
4,288
4,752
5,216
5,680 max

These are Germany rates I believe.
There are many additional premiums (up to triple overtime,holiday,some kind of family pay,commuting pay etc.)You get 14 paychecks there if I remember correctly, because you receive a Vacation bonus and a Xmass bonus(one month's pay each).This is very common all over Europe.

 

[Bob Owens]

Thanks guys.

Regular mechanic gets $89,088, or around $45.56/hr (based on the shorter 37.6 hour German workweek and the current exchange rate) we get $68,120, or $32.75.

They get around $12.81/hr more than we do. We would need a 40% increase to match their hourly rate, and we would still pay much more for medical, have much less vacation, and far fewer holidays. You could probably add another $7/hr when you factor those in. Yea they pay more income tax but they also get college paid for and a lot of other social entitlements that we pay out the nose for. They get taxed because they go to work, I have to work to pay tax.

So the $20 k figure was accurate, actually $20968 at current exchange rates which have come down off their highs, and they work at least 125 less hours. 255 if they get paid for their meal period.

If AA has no problem paying their line mechanics in Europe $45.56/hr, never mind all the paid vacation, zero medical, holidays, premiums etc, then, since it costs more to live in New York than any big city in Germany, they shouldnt have any problem paying us $45 as well.

 

[eolesen]

So move to Germany... I hear it's nice.

Germany's income tax is around 15% on the first EUR50K and 42% on everything above that. Don't also overlook the fact that they have a 10-20% GST or VAT on just about everything.


If AA only had a dozen or two mechanics in New York, you're probably right that they wouldn't have any problem paying a market rate.

Apparently your union decided a long time ago they'd rather have more people working making less money, rather than have fewer people making more money.

 

[TWU informer]

Apparently your union decided a long time ago they'd rather have more people working making less money, rather than have fewer people making more money.

Exactly, and I think our union has actually practiced that since day one to the demise of the those in our profession througout the industry with the exception of Cargo Haulers.

 

[Bob Owens]

So move to Germany... I hear it's nice.

How original. In other words you had no decent comback to justify that AA pays their mechanics over in Germany more than they pay us.

Germany's income tax is around 15% on the first EUR50K and 42% on everything above that. Don't also overlook the fact that they have a 10-20% GST or VAT on just about everything.

I think we've gone over this before. I have to come up with around $10,000 in tax money even if I dont earn or spend a penny. So my tax burden is just as high and I dont get Medical, a pension, free college tuition etc. You also leave out that their SSI, Local, State etc are all rolled into that 15%, and 42%. There's no VAT on essentials.

If AA only had a dozen or two mechanics in New York, you're probably right that they wouldn't have any problem paying a market rate.

If AA only needed a dozen or two thats all they would have. The arguement that if they had fewer they would be willing to pay more is absolute fiction, because if you followed that arguement we should be making 35% more than we were in 2003 because there are 35% fewer of us.

Apparently your union decided a long time ago they'd rather have more people working making less money, rather than have fewer people making more money.

That may or may not be true but the fact is we ended up with fewer people making less money.

 

[upsilon]

There's no VAT on essentials.

Wrong!. In Germany the VAT is 7% on food. It is 19% on everyting else. And it is applied everytime anything changes hands. Thus it is compounded.

And while there is a COL differential between TUL/DAL/FTW and NYC/CHI/LAX, there is just as much between the latter and FRA/DUS/MUC. Even when the € and the $ were at par the difference was significant. And the same is true of LON. I know because until recently I was over there a total of about two months out of every year.

 

[FWAAA]

Two daily flights to/from FRA and AA employs its own mechanics there?

As has been posted before, higher mechanic pay in Europe supports the supposition that AA would probably pay the line mechanics in the US substantially more money as long as it didn't have to do the same for the thousands of mechanics in Tulsa and Fort Worth. Line maintenance can't be shipped elsewhere but scheduled maintenance can be performed anywhere in the world.