After re-reading the original post, I'm thinking that what gets reported as taxable income is the 10% of the full fare paid, in my example 10% of the $2,000, or $200, not the $2,000 itself. Although one could argue that US is reporting what the "benefit" was worth (haha), i.e. the full fare, $2,000, not what was paid. So which is it? Either way they're screwing the VFs. It's like an ID90 with the added taxable income kicker. If US is not required to report the amount paid/full fare to IRS, then what they're doing is pure mean, meant to discourage VFs from using the bennie promised. It's not like the standby travel costs them much and the VFs were helping out the company. This is how appreciative US management is. My spouse used to work for US and was always hoping for some kind of separation incentive or early retirement option. None was ever offered. Things got worse...pay cuts, benefit reductions, furloughs. We finally figured there was no hope and resignation was the final decision. (Best decision ever made btw) Now I'm thinking that all of this crap from management is their form of downsizing. Make things miserable enough for employees, cut their pay, cut their benefits, and eventually they'll leave without the company having to pay ANYTHING. Also, convert many stations to express (Mid Atlantic Airways or whatever it's called) and pay your former mainline CS agents $13/hr tops, if they're even offered that. I always found that US treated their employees as liabilities, not assets. This was all occurring as W&G were virtually raping the company and offering p-poor management decisions in return. It's all very sad and I certainly feel for those who are left and have to put up with truly incompetent management and a worsening work environment.
