Pilot Bid for Nov/Dec

[BoeingBoy]

I told them I'd be glad to take a consultant position - about $200K a year ought to be about right.....

I think furloughee's should be able to "bid" for all F/O positions plus the E-190 Captain - that should be sufficient. That's be about 18 or so choices. I guess it's theoretically possible that a group 2 or better Captain slot could end up vacant but it'd probably only take one phone call to fill that.

Jim

 

[Dorf]

You guys & gals that are directly affected can tell me what you think of the idea I gave to the chairman. In the letters, include all the bidding codes for the different bases/equipment and have the furloughees send back of list of jobs they'll accept recall to - sort of a "phantom bid" as I mentioned earlier. Then use these "phantom bids" to award the available vacancies. It'd sure make the process go faster. What do you think?

Jim

That would be a good idea Jim. It would speed up the process and give everyone a little better idea of where they stand in the scheme of things. It would also save they company money from having to send out 150 letters to the same guys who said no the previous times. If there are only E190 positions available and you will only accept an Airbus position, then don't put the 190 on your bid and they will skip over you until an Airbus slot opens up. If you change your mind, you can always update your preference form up until the bid closes.

 

[Crzipilot]

Jim...

Definately. Put out a psuedo preference form with a spot for each position. Put it into the software and let it go. Even put the bids onto a APL list so everyone can ensure that the company got their choices.
The biggest drawback and stumbling block to this is, those which the company does not hear from, would still have to be notified in the same manner, to foregore anyone coming back later saying they were never contacted or something? But it would also allow those to indefinately bypass the 190, forgo that equipment lock, and hold a AB or 737 position when they can hold it.

 

[smfav8r]

Jim,

I think U should give you that 200K a year for consulting...otherwise, a lot of us will be in the dark.

The standing bid for the furloughed pilots sounds like a good idea. What is the current deal, is there a seat lock for the APL pilots that choose to come back as a F/O on the 190? I'm guessing the typical 2 years.

Once again, thanks for all the info you've given and enjoy the retirement

 

[chevyman]

No I haven't. After finishing the bid closing, the committee chairman & I (we were the only two from the ALPA side there) headed home (I flew out/into CLT since we don't have non-stop service to GSO-PIT any longer, so got home sometime about 9 PM). From what the chairman said, the recall centers around Charlene's (sp?) office but he was actively involved - said the spring process took about 3 weeks which is probably pretty reasonable considering that the furloughees have things to do besides sit by the phone waiting for a call.

You guys & gals that are directly affected can tell me what you think of the idea I gave to the chairman. In the letters, include all the bidding codes for the different bases/equipment and have the furloughees send back of list of jobs they'll accept recall to - sort of a "phantom bid" as I mentioned earlier. Then use these "phantom bids" to award the available vacancies. It'd sure make the process go faster. What do you think?

Jim

Sounds like a great idea Jim. Sorta like what they are doing for J4J program now and in the past.

 

[Crzipilot]

SMFAV8R...

Obviously your in need of my consulting again.....it will be the usual 12pack cost....give me a call...LOL...

 

[Furloughedagain]

USAir has furloughees working overseas at places like Emirates and Cathay Pacific.

There are furloughees working for part-91 flight departments who may be gone weeks at a time.

There are furloughees working for Fractionals such as NetJets who may be on 7-14 day "tours".

It will take time to get even a registered letter to these people. And once they have it, they won't be able to make a decision instantaneously.

The fact is that, for many of us, it has been 5 years since the furlough. While we appreciate the opportunity to be recalled, we need some consideration in terms of time.

We need the time to discuss the decision with our families and determine what impact a recall might have. Heck, some of us don't even live in commutable cities, so a recall would mean moving, the wife finding a new job (that's right, most furloughees are two-income families for what should be obvious reasons), taking the kids out of school, etc.

Two-weeks notice to employers is often required in order to be paid for accrued vacation etc.

And -- listen up ALPA -- the furloughees should all be sent a copy of a current contract or a summary of pay, benefits, work-rules, retirement.

I wouldn't buy a car site-unseen, how can I be expected to make a life-changing decision without knowing what it's going to be like?

This is the time that the furlough administrator needs to really get on the ball and start doing some hard-core communication! That's what he's being paid for.

I agree that it would be nice to be able to place a standing bid, but without a little information I would frankly just be shooting in the dark.

Mike
DOH 1/99

 

[BoeingBoy]

I understand completely (well, not being in that position, call it "sorta" completely).

What I'd envision (and hope) would be an initial mailing to all furloughees giving as much as possible of that information - bidding codes, pay rates, etc, etc.

Obviously, information on a specific bid isn't available till the bid is put out by resource planning, but that would be put out (letter or email??) when known (like the bid code for the E-190 on this bid).

Jim

 

[U 737 PILOT]

Well said Mike. I am fairly senior on the APL list and have heard almost nothing from the furlough administrator on what is going on these days at USAir. I get my information from this and another message board. That's NOT how this should work. If the company wants more timely responses, then someone needs to be communicating with us, not making us go hunting for information.

USAir has furloughees working overseas at places like Emirates and Cathay Pacific.

There are furloughees working for part-91 flight departments who may be gone weeks at a time.

There are furloughees working for Fractionals such as NetJets who may be on 7-14 day "tours".

It will take time to get even a registered letter to these people. And once they have it, they won't be able to make a decision instantaneously.

The fact is that, for many of us, it has been 5 years since the furlough. While we appreciate the opportunity to be recalled, we need some consideration in terms of time.

We need the time to discuss the decision with our families and determine what impact a recall might have. Heck, some of us don't even live in commutable cities, so a recall would mean moving, the wife finding a new job (that's right, most furloughees are two-income families for what should be obvious reasons), taking the kids out of school, etc.

Two-weeks notice to employers is often required in order to be paid for accrued vacation etc.

And -- listen up ALPA -- the furloughees should all be sent a copy of a current contract or a summary of pay, benefits, work-rules, retirement.

I wouldn't buy a car site-unseen, how can I be expected to make a life-changing decision without knowing what it's going to be like?

This is the time that the furlough administrator needs to really get on the ball and start doing some hard-core communication! That's what he's being paid for.

I agree that it would be nice to be able to place a standing bid, but without a little information I would frankly just be shooting in the dark.

Mike
DOH 1/99

 

[Poug Darker]

He wants a copy of the current contract and work rules???
HA HA HA HA HA HA !!!!!
Ahem....


What contract?

 

[ONTHESTREET]

I understand completely (well, not being in that position, call it "sorta" completely).

What I'd envision (and hope) would be an initial mailing to all furloughees giving as much as possible of that information - bidding codes, pay rates, etc, etc.

Obviously, information on a specific bid isn't available till the bid is put out by resource planning, but that would be put out (letter or email??) when known (like the bid code for the E-190 on this bid).

Jim

I am adding my hat into the mix about needing better info from the company and ALPA. Especially ALPA.

The only thing I have received in the last year from USAirways ALPA is the survey about who may come back.

To my knowledge I have never received anything from the furlough coordinator, this is the first I have heard of recalls for the 190, I never heard about the mentioned recent J4J slots, and I found out about the recalls generated by the 757's from a public webboard such as this one. Information on the merger and how it is or may affect the furloughees is non-existant.

Please, please, toss us a bone here!


P.S. What is the deal with the loss of sick bank for certian folks? I wrangled a current sen list from an MDA F/O and saw that many of us had our bank wiped clean while others still show theirs.

Thanks for the info.

 

[BoeingBoy]

i can certainly sympathize. With access to the ALPA site cut off for many of you and little other official information flowing your way, it's understandable that you feel abandoned and forgotten.

Not to defend the furlough administrator, but he is a volunteer so at least he's not sitting in the MEC office collecting FPL while keeping you in the dark.

Call or email him with your concerns and complaints - if he doesn't want to hear it he's the wrong person for the job.

If you're not getting any information, check that the address you have on file is correct - someone has sent out a letter to at least some of the furloughees for each bid (only the top 10 per each anticipated recall slot - 150 for the 15 slots on this bid).

Personally, I can't see why all furloughees shouldn't have access to the MEC website, but in their "infinite wisdom" that's what the MEC decided. Maybe calling or writing the reps for your last base (or any reps) would make a difference.

In the meantime, I'm certainly no expert on all furlough matters but I'll point you in hopefully the right direction (or at least tell you that I have no clue!). PM me and I'll provide my phone # and email address. Upcoming retirement notwithstanding, I'll do what I can to help.

So don't be bashful.....

Jim

ps - off on a 4-day now.

 

[Dorf]

I agree that it would be nice to be able to place a standing bid, but without a little information I would frankly just be shooting in the dark.

Mike
DOH 1/99

Mike,

The only people, as far as I know, that were cut off the U ALPA site are retirees. I heard if you call the MEC office in PIT they will put you back on if you have been cut off. There are plenty off fuloughees, even those at SWA, Jet Blue, Netjets, and all the other company's you mentioned still post on the U ALPA message boards. Plus, all the other info is available there.

Dorf

 

[chevyman]

Mike,

The only people, as far as I know, that were cut off the U ALPA site are retirees. I heard if you call the MEC office in PIT they will put you back on if you have been cut off. There are plenty off fuloughees, even those at SWA, Jet Blue, Netjets, and all the other company's you mentioned still post on the U ALPA message boards. Plus, all the other info is available there.

Dorf

I am furloughed and have no problem accessing the boards. The email for the furlough administrator is:

j4j@alpa.org

He has always responded to all my emails within a few days.The best places to piece together some recall and furlough info is flightinfo.com(talk with the west dudes), this site, AAA boards, and AAA MEC web site. You should be able to gather some good intel and maybe piece together a picture of what is going on. I also forgot to mention "The Hub". Listen to all the "Crew News" and other sources there. Don't forget the financial blogs.

 

[Furloughedagain]

With all due respect, unless you are currently involved with US Airways (with a J4J carrier for example) it is not particularly realistic to expect a furloughed pilot to look at "the Hub", "Crew News", financial blogs, the MEC website etc.

If I thought a recall was pending perhaps I would make time to do so, but to be honest I simply don't spend near as much time as I used to concerned about USAir.

I know, you're thinking, "the guy said he wanted info but he's not willing to take the time to do the research and get it!"

I guess i'm saying that, for those of us who are far removed from US, sure would be nice if the furlough admin would help out by sending monthly or quarterly updates (preferably by mail) and offering information to pilots. Even just a phone call saying, "Hey, a bid is coming out in a few weeks, you may get a registered letter. Can I answer any questions for you?"

During a period of active recalls I would EXPECT a furlough administrator to be in the office Mon-Fri, 8am until 5pm, handling the many needs of those pilots who are being recalled and those who are coming next. If that requires the union to pay FPL so be it. It's a cost of doing the business of representing pilots.

Perhaps it falls upon me to do my own research, but with no idea when that registered letter will come, I just can not spend the time necessary to stay up-to-date indefinately.

Frankly, this web-site is about the only one I still frequent simply because it is easy to read and entertaining.