I hope no one needs to fly Delta to any of the concerts that are left because the pilots announced today that they will strike. I sure am glad Tony left when he did. This is bad, very bad.
They only authorized a strike....
The actual strike, if it happens, is a month or so away. The management is planning on deep sixing the current contract by April 15th, if they can get court approval, and the pilots simply voted beforehand, so if it goes down, which it will, they can strike immediately.
So, for now, things are status quo. No problems for the next few weeks.
Delta has the same problem that Ford and GM do with their legacy costs. It costs GM over $2,000 dollars per vehicle sold just to pay for employees who NO LONGER are employed with the company.
The Union contracts signed in the 60's, 70's, and 80's are absolutely killing these once strong American companies.
The only way that Ford and GM can compete again is to go Bankrupt, bust the Union, and start over.
You will see, over the next 20 years Unions become a thing of the past in the US.
Yep Unions are killing old American businesses. Delta had been offering HUGE incentive packages for people that have been there 10 years and over to quit or retire early. They even offered free healthcare for people who were eligible to retire but hadn't yet, and free flights for life!!! Many people took advantage of that and in turn, we went from paying about $30/month for a family plan for medical, dental, and vision to over $400/month at the time Tony left. Talk about budget shock!!! Everyone's healthcare has increased so much though. It's been nuts!!
Strike! Yippee
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It is not just about high wages and benefits. It is the anti-quality and anti-competitive attitudes of unions that also kill the goose that laid the golden egg.
Buying a new home can Really Stink when the construction industry is unionized and too lazy to use a portapotty - but instead pisses in the basement sump pump. I also recall sweating out possible higher mortgage rates (six years ago) when the other unions struck (and delayed the closing date) in reaction to a shoddy siding installer being fired by the builder.
My previous two jobs were with unionized companies with union rules, union gridlock, and poisoned attitudes.
Fortunately, I have worked the last 16 years for a productive non-union company.
My Dad retired from CSX a couple of years ago. He was in managment so not in the union but I remember him telling us he'd never cross a picket line. That gets dangerous!!
The earliest that the pilots can strike is April 17th.
If the pilots do strike, it is akin to cutting off your nose to spite your face. A strike of any significant length will spell the end of Delta Airlines, and the end of jobs for the striking pilots.
My neighbor is a Comair pilot, and we talk fairly often about what is going on, and, from his perspective, Delta is all but finished if these pilots strike.
The company will sell off Comair, and go belly up....
If, somehow Delta can break the union in a short period of time following a strike, they can staw afloat, and become profitable again.
Delta has said from the beginning that if the pilots strike, that will be the end of the company. I'd like to know how in the hell they got themselves in this position in the first place. It can't all be 9/11's fault. I know that Delta's pilots are paid WAY more than the rest of the industry but still, to ask someone to take such a huge pay cut all at once, is awful. When you make a certain amount of money for a long time, buy a home that fits in the budget of that salary, cars, etc. You can't really afford to take a pay cut. I totally feel awful for the pilots and I hope something can be worked out. I know they agreed to the 9$ pay cut last year, but now they want them to take, what is it, another 30% cut? I'd say SEEEE YAAAAA too.