Get Ready

[AMFAMAN]

Are there any employers, let alone airlines, that are willing to pay their hourly employees for their meal breaks? Seriously.

The only ones I know of that did was before the strike, NWA mechanics for afternoon and midnight shifts and ten hour days. United worked a 8:15 day(not sure if they still do, but I think they held onto that), so the company paid 15 minutes of the lunch. Alaska(new contract) and SWA still have it for midnight shift.

Almost all airlines still have a paid lunch clause that requires a penalty for a late or no lunch in the form of 1/2 hour or more of pay - twu gave that up at AA. Now they can send you to lunch whenever they want or just don't send you at all and there is no recourse. Some have gone to the DOL but to no luck, as they just look the other way.

BTW...the twu gave up the 8 hour day almost 20 years ago on all shifts, while the rest of the industry is just getting hit for it now.

I'll tell you even more, I gave my notice last week. My last day will be Oct. 31st.

Hey are you going to wear your future uniform to work for your last day, being that it will be Halloween.

Oneflyer's New Job

 

[whatkindoffreshhell]

"Fellow pilots, we ask a simple question: Why the rush?" the statement read, adding that "productivity increases will stagnate your career progression."

No rush, no rush at all. Go gently into that good night.....

Youse guys need a real union like the UAW who knew when to drop their drawers after Delphi filed BK --- slam-bam-thank-you-maam --- and are now progressing to the day when they can return the favor.

Don't like it at AA? Then just leave. Oh, wait a minute, there's that union seniority bugaboo that would haunt you at another carrier.....

Neither the airlines nor their unions should expect any sympathy from the flying unwashed masses (i.e. your customers). You had us over a barrel for years, now deal with it yourselves.

Instead of demonstrating some pride, you insist on bitcching.

Good luck!!

 

[will fix for food]

Thanks for seeing the light. I don't know about the rampers at AE but most I've talked to make about 8-12 bucks an hour and they've been here for a while. 4th year Flight Attendants at AA make more than 8 year FO's at Eagle. AE FA's max out at about 25 bucks per flight hour (they are trying to improve that). 1/3 of Eagle Captains are flowbacks from AA, which means many FO's here have already taken it in the chin either being displaced to (from Captain) or held at $30K/yr FO wages. Eagle has no funded retirement and worse health care than you guys. I am not callous to AA taking cuts but you guys have a long way to go, still, before you come down to Eagle's level.

Eagle mechanics top out at 25/hour. When was the last time AA mechs had that top out? 1995?

 

[AMFAMAN]

Neither the airlines nor their unions should expect any sympathy from the flying unwashed masses (i.e. your customers). You had us over a barrel for years, now deal with it yourselves.

"Over a barrel," you surely aren't talking about the twu mechanics contract. I've been showing this contract to non-union folks for the past 15 or so years and even they laugh and say it sucks.

Eagle mechanics top out at 25/hour. When was the last time AA mechs had that top out? 1995?

1995 contract that ended in June 2001. With the new contract, I am making less now than in 1995, when you take into account the loss of holidays, sick pay, cost of medical increases, etc, etc, etc. Personally, no one should back even one penny. The mechanics at AA continue to give everyday through twu endorsed(no voting) productivity changes. We have lost 1/3 of the workforce and have increased production as a whole, all outside of the 2003 concessions. If they can't make it with that, SHUT IT DOWN.

 

[j7915]

"Over a barrel," you surely aren't talking about the twu mechanics contract. I've been showing this contract to non-union folks for the past 15 or so years and even they laugh and say it sucks.
1995 contract that ended in June 2001. With the new contract, I am making less now than in 1995, when you take into account the loss of holidays, sick pay, cost of medical increases, etc, etc, etc. Personally, no one should back even one penny. The mechanics at AA continue to give everyday through twu endorsed(no voting) productivity changes. We have lost 1/3 of the workforce and have increased production as a whole, all outside of the 2003 concessions. If they can't make it with that, SHUT IT DOWN.

Is AA making work rule changes that violate the contract? Or are they making changes that allow you to be productive for more of your 8 hours?

Maybe, just maybe the company is still overmanned, bad habits accumulated and were covered up by adding manpower, instead of raising efficiency.

 

[Skymess]

Maybe, just maybe the company is still overmanned, bad habits accumulated and were covered up by adding manpower, instead of raising efficiency.

Why is it efficiency problems are never addressed in management? Why does it take 1 union worker to screw in a lightbulb and 800 managers to debate over how to do it before it gets done? Or before they decide to just let the union guy/girl do it because they don't get paid to screw in light bulbs.

Let management slim down and give someone more control over actual decision making instead of having 5 layers of management to water down the decision making.

I find it frustrating as a front line employee to address problems to managers who have no real say about why things are done the way they are and who have no control to change even the smallest recurrent problem.

Productivity issues should be addressed in all areas if productivity is the problem. From where I am standing it looks as though we need to get smarter management who understand the concept that if your company is not making a profit that you can't pull down a million dollar pay check and a million dollar bonus. Add those paychecks to the tune of a few hundred and you will find out why we are sinking faster than we can swim.

 

[Hopeful]

"Fellow pilots, we ask a simple question: Why the rush?" the statement read, adding that "productivity increases will stagnate your career progression."

No rush, no rush at all. Go gently into that good night.....

Youse guys need a real union like the UAW who knew when to drop their drawers after Delphi filed BK --- slam-bam-thank-you-maam --- and are now progressing to the day when they can return the favor.

Don't like it at AA? Then just leave. Oh, wait a minute, there's that union seniority bugaboo that would haunt you at another carrier.....

Neither the airlines nor their unions should expect any sympathy from the flying unwashed masses (i.e. your customers). You had us over a barrel for years, now deal with it yourselves.

Instead of demonstrating some pride, you insist on bitcching.

Good luck!!

Spoke to an A300 Captain yesterday. I asked him what was going on in pilot world. He said the company is putting down, or threatening to put down a few A300's. He said if that happens, he could kiss his Captain slot goodbye. He also said that the talks between the pilots and the company have turned into threats. The company is basically telling the pilots they want the SCOPE, or else. The company cited JetBlue and their new 100 seat regional jets as the time for eliminating the scope clause.

 

[FWAAA]

Well now let's see.

It was alledged that AA was down to $1.6 Billion in cash when the lawyers were on the Court House steps.

Now, despite losses in every quarter but one since, there is now magically $3.9 billion in cash. All it would take is lower price fuel, and RECORD profits would be the theme of the day.

Cash was actually about $1.8 billion at its low point, of which about $550 million was restricted cash, leaving $1.25 billion of unrestricted cah, or a $250 million cushion before default would occur on most all debt (loan covenants required $1 billion or more of unrestricted cash).

http://www.shareholder.com/aa/EdgarDetail....03-25&SID=03-00

Cash is "magically" now $3.9 billion?? No magic about it. Just the difference between "cash flow" and "profit and loss."

AMR has been cash flow positive every quarter since the concessions were enacted. The "losses" include non-cash costs like depreciation and amortization. More cash has come in the register than has been spent, but accounting losses have continued. That and the billions AMR has borrowed since the spring of 2003. That has helped add cash to the pile.

I agree with the rest of your post. Had fuel prices in 3Q2005 been at 3Q2003 levels, AMR would have made over a billion dollars last quarter. A few dozen of those quarters, and AMR could repay a lot of that debt it has piled up.

Say no to concessions.

 

[AAviator]

Spoke to an A300 Captain yesterday. I asked him what was going on in pilot world. He said the company is putting down, or threatening to put down a few A300's. He said if that happens, he could kiss his Captain slot goodbye. He also said that the talks between the pilots and the company have turned into threats. The company is basically telling the pilots they want the SCOPE, or else. The company cited JetBlue and their new 100 seat regional jets as the time for eliminating the scope clause.

Bad info. The company wants productivity, and we have some guys that can't give it too them fast enough.

Haven't heard any threats yet.

Scope has not been brought up. (yet)

jetBlue? The 100 seat a/c is a mainline A/C there. As it will be at AA if it ever shows up on the property. Where would the money come from anyway?

 

[TWU informer]

That is amazing!

More money has come in (over $2 Billion) than has been spent.

But (Accounting) losses create reported losses.

Well then FIRE the accountant, or maybe I should hire the accountant to do my taxes.

If you are cash flow positive, why pay interest on huge loans just to have cash in the bank?

 

[Connected1]

From where I am standing it looks as though we need to get smarter management who understand the concept that if your company is not making a profit that you can't pull down a million dollar pay check and a million dollar bonus. Add those paychecks to the tune of a few hundred and you will find out why we are sinking faster than we can swim.

Here is the list of people in the company who pull down $1 million paychecks:

 

[FWAAA]

That is amazing!

More money has come in (over $2 Billion) than has been spent.

But (Accounting) losses create reported losses.

Well then FIRE the accountant, or maybe I should hire the accountant to do my taxes.

If you are cash flow positive, why pay interest on huge loans just to have cash in the bank?

Why pay interest on all that extra cash? The very real fear that if it is paid off, the lenders won't let AA re-borrow it, that's why.

The reason that depreciation causes net losses is because you can't (and shouldn't, even if the rules let you) write off brand new $180 million 777s in the year you buy them. Accounting rules (applicable to everyone, not just airlines) require that you write off a portion of that purchase price each year.

If you were an accrual basis entity (like AA is) instead of a cash-basis entity, then your personal finances might show a net loss even when you were cash flow positive.

AA is cash-flow positive but the effect of those losses is to highlight that AA is not generating enough money to replace its airplanes. Or to pay down some of the post-year 2000 additonal debt. That's all.

 

[eolesen]

I gotta laugh every time I see someone trying to compare Eagle wages with AA wages....

It's benefits enrollment time -- go compare what you're getting with the Eagle folks, or take a look at the differences between retirement plans (since there isn't one for most Eagle employees other than a self-funded 401K, that's fairly simple).

 

[AMFAMAN]

I gotta laugh every time I see someone trying to compare Eagle wages with AA wages....

It's benefits enrollment time -- go compare what you're getting with the Eagle folks, or take a look at the differences between retirement plans (since there isn't one for most Eagle employees other than a self-funded 401K, that's fairly simple).

Well for their pilots with Captain Randy Babbitt (now AA and twu's favorite ECLAT owner) running the ALPA show at the time they signed the ridiculous agreement, what do you expect. Say wasn't Jeff Brundage (now AA VP) assisting Captain Randy at ALPA at the time?

As far as the rest, looks like they need better unions.

 

[Hopeful]

Bad info. The company wants productivity, and we have some guys that can't give it too them fast enough.

Haven't heard any threats yet.

Scope has not been brought up. (yet)

jetBlue? The 100 seat a/c is a mainline A/C there. As it will be at AA if it ever shows up on the property. Where would the money come from anyway?

On the A300 issue, I did hear from my maintenance manager that is on the table.