Midatlantic Info

[Air conditioned]

I tried looking back on previous threads, but could not find any info regarding the next MAA flight attendant class.

Has anyone heard any news regarding when it will be, how many people this may involve, or even if?

Also, what is the ratio of how many f/a's were offered positions as compared to how many people actually accepted?

Anyone know how the current MAA employees (229 of 'em?) like it so far?

Thanks...

 

[atlantis]

heard they are having small class in april but dont know how many but maybe not til may ? good queston.

 

[Colby]

What I have heard is that if you go to THEHUB there is a class list....Heard that these people are all Senior to the Last class .... Guess a lot of people chose to wait until April to take the Class ......

C~

 

[Light Years]

There is a small class in April, mostly senior people who passed the first two classes. The rumour mill (again, a rumour) says that they want to go ahead and have a class of 100 in May. It would make sense as they will be getting 4-5 planes a month by then. Also, people at MAA are apparently thinking they will be hiring off the street by summer.

 

[Phantom Fixer]

There is a small class in April, mostly senior people who passed the first two classes. The rumour mill (again, a rumour) says that they want to go ahead and have a class of 100 in May. It would make sense as they will be getting 4-5 planes a month by then. Also, people at MAA are apparently thinking they will be hiring off the street by summer.

Light Years,

By the comments being made about possibly hiring from the street at some point in the near future , does this lead us to believe that furloughee's are passing on employment with MAA?

If furloughee's are passing on employment with MAA....does this send a signal of disgust for the job and the industry...or a vote of NO Confidence with U's future , to even warrant accepting a lower paying job for an un-certain period of time?

I'm curious as to your take on this situation. Thanks in advance.

 

[Light Years]

A pilot friend and I were just talking about this. I apologize in advance for the essay.

We're talking about flight attendants hired between 1999 and 2001. Heres my theories:

*Many were young or new to the airline industry, and dusted themselves off and took thier wings elsewhere, not bothered about giving up a recall to a failing dinosaur airline.

*Others simply got jobs outside the industry because they knew it would never be the same again.

*US Airways was still considered a big-time, major airline when these folks were hired, and many were hired after the United merger was announced. Alot of these flight attendants (shock!) were not from Pennsylvania or North Carolina. US recruited all over the country, and rather heavily on the West Coast. United stopped hiring before US did, and many thought they would be based out west or in Chicago eventually or at least have options for commuting to other parts of the country once the airlines merged.

They also hired alot of language speakers as at that time they wanted to be a worlwide airline. F/As who commuted or did the crash pad lifestyle may have been fine with it when they were on reserve working trips to Los Angeles, St. Maarten and Munich, but arent keen on the idea of picking up and heading back to "The Burgh" to live on Ramen noodles and wait for the call to go to Buffalo.

*Not all of them hang out on USAviation to get news. Again, alot of them live outside of USAirland and may not hear much about US Airways at all (we're not front page news in say, Seattle), and they may not keep in touch with friends that are in the know. The company has been horrible about keeping these people informed. Many dont know they even have travel benefits. Originally we were going to lose them three months after our furlough, and then they changed thier minds and let us keep them. I met a F/A at an interview who had been furloughed for a year and had no idea she was still allowed to non-rev.

Many dont even know what MidAtlantic is... how would they? The company has not sent any information about it AT ALL. They are sending the interest letter, you have a few days to reply, and then they send you training materials. I know someone who got a week's notice. Furthermore, since it is US Airways Express, a lot of them are picturing a tiny RJ or a prop... theres no aircraft information given. I know some people who were concerned about thier height, thinking it was a small RJ.

*A few hundred of these flight attendants were terminated, not furloughed. They were still in thier 7-month probationary period when the company can terminate them without cause. Many were met on the jetway after a flight and stripped of thier wings, ID's and manuals on the spot and escorted off airport property like a criminal. This was two months after September 11th, these were the very same F/As who were on reserve and returned to work after 9/11. Later the union got them added back onto the furlough list, but again some of them dont even know that. Some are very bitter and angry about it, as you can imagine. I have a friend who loved his job but has sworn off the airlines after that. I dont know that I'd still feel any loyalty to the company had I been one of them.

*Many of them just dont open thier mail.

*Philly was a very junior base (also the "hippest" if you ask some ), and LGA was REALLY junior. Alot of people dont want to commute to, much less move to PIT, the only current base.

*Alot of people would rather pass on MAA, but will go to mainline when they call back as is our option. Of course, the moon will fall out of the sky before that happens, but to each his own.

*Many probably do feel its too little too late. Some of these people have been gone for two and a half years, and just NOW they're offering Express jobs? All of the Express carriers were hiring after 9/11, where was the soft landing then? Alot of mainline flight attendants have been turned down by other Express carriers.

And everyone knows that they are being called back to do what they did before for lower pay. Most of these folks only made between 20-27K a year, depending on how much they flew. They worked thier butts off, sitting reserve and trying to get thier hours in. Now the company is offering the same type of job they did before on the F100, DC9, MD80, and 737, but for $16 or $17 an hour (which works out to about 15k a year!), but more work, less time off and a copy of the worst contract in the industry- many of the US Express affiliates make more to work on turboprops.

So alot will tell them to put thier MAA where the sun don't shine. My bet is that they'll get about 300-400 former mainline flight attendants (out of nearly 2000 I think) and then find new people dumb enough to fly the largest "Express" plane in the industry fot the lowest wage in the industry... new hire MidAtlantic f/as will make $12 an hour... to put that in perspective wholly owned PSA makes $14, affiliate Shuttle America makes $18.

 

[Phantom Fixer]

Thanks Light Years !!!

You have confirmed what I was thinking or should I say assuming?

I'm not one to latch onto subjects that I clearly have no grasp of...or personal interest in / impact from , yet I do try to be informed as to what the other side of the coin is having to endure. My interests and concerns do revolve around how good people are being treated...or in this case financially and informationally mis-treated as it seems.

I too have met furloughed F/A's in the CLT area....most if not all have moved on to more lucrative and in some cases more rewarding pursuits. Just last week I meet a former U mainline F/A...and She is now an Emergency Medical Technician with our local EMS Service. She stated that see didn't miss the reserve system of old...and would have certainly quit with what she's heard about the current system. She went on to say how happy she was to no longer having to maintain a crash pad in PIT and a part-time residence in CLT.

From what I gather...her current compensation is on par with what U was paying her...but the future is limitless with further training as a Para-Medic being in progress at present. Seems to me...a former U "Go Getter" isn't being knocked down by the turn of events. My take is this....you make your own breaks in life ..and U is not the end of lifes journey unless you view it as such.

 

[Light Years]

Good for her! I'm glad she's doing well... we really had some terrific people and some great times. I'll go to MAA, but I hear ya, if something better comes I'm off like a prom dress... I'm trying to keep my options open (and get some motivation).

 

[PITbull]

What I have heard is that if you go to THEHUB there is a class list....Heard that these people are all Senior to the Last class .... Guess a lot of people chose to wait until April to take the Class ......

C~

April 19 is suppose to start a class of 18. The MAA committee goes into negotiations with the company again on the 19th as well, for 5 days at CCY.

There is an MAA E-line that folks need to sign up with Local PIT 40. Call the office to sign up.

There are still f/as on the present INVOL furlough list that have yet to be called. Many folks passed this quarter round. However, keep in mind that we have "saved flight attendants" still working that will one day be INVOL furloughed who are senior to those presently at MAA or on the present INVOL list. Those future furlughees will not be able to displace a f/a of MAA but once they "slot in" will most definitely be senior.

The company states that there should be approx 85 planes by end of 2006 at MAA. There are suppose to be 24 f/as to an airplane.

Do the math.

Negotiations are still ongoing. The committee hopes to either conclude the negotiations that week or be much further along with the "medical issue" resolved.

PS: 3 grievances are being filed, thus far, for MAA.

 

[jbragg476]

yep... I'm one of those riding the line... I highly doubt that I will be on Mainline for long even though I have been recalled back to CLT and it seems like they are always running out of people.. Get the opporation up and running and save me a spot.. probably be there by Sept...lol

 

[Air conditioned]

Wow, thanks for the info PITbull and Light Years.

You are correct, PITbull, about the lack of information coming (or not coming) from the company!
I was not aware of the MAA e-line, so hopefully other people will see this and sign up for it as well.

This company seems to like keeping people in the dark until the very last minute...I have never understood it.

I guess those of us that do return to MAA will do so because it is in our blood and not for the money... :unsure:

Thanks again.