Delta pilot's union orders lockers cleared out

[dozeman]

Just read this on yahoo news. Things are not looking good.

 

[NJBlackBerry]

Too bad... I wonder if unemployment pays more than a reduced contract?

 

[dozeman]

Strike will be a disaster for everyone involved. They must reach a settlement. If they strike most will never fly for a living again.

 

[PlutoPony]

This makes me think the union's not getting anywhere with negotiatons and is very concerned the courts will rule against them - so they're stepping up the PR campaign...... IMHO both sides stand a very good chance of winning the battle but losing the war. I really feel for the majority of the Delta employees whose futures will decided by the way this plays out and have absolutely NO say in what's going on....

 

[CarolA]

And right now several pilots are wandering around the Atlanta airport going "I have a locker? Anyone know where it is?" LOL!

I promise most of them keep very little in there. They live out of those big briefcases....

The Union leader is just up for his daily 60 seconds on the news by this stunt. (He can't strike early and he thinks it's going to take 10 days to clean out a locker???)

As for the other employees, the FAs are letting the pilots have it! Trust me. When the pilots tried this stunt a few months ago there were reports on flyertalk of FAs and Gate Agents giving the pilots a piece of thier mind.

 

[tkldisney]

I don't think they get unemployment for a strike. If there is a strike fund they will receive $$ from that.
Posted earlier that my brother is AK Steel employee which they are in lockout. They were also told to clean out their lockers, I think this is just a measure they have to take. If they would strike, anything left in the lockers would become property of DL or the airport which ever owns the lockers!

 

[Lewisc]

Too bad... I wonder if unemployment pays more than a reduced contract?

Probably not.

Will the pilot make out better if the bankruptcy court auctions off routes and the pilots get jobs with different airlines? I don't know.

Will the pilots make out better if the bankruptcy court sells the airline to one or more existing airlines? I don't know.

If the union agrees to renegotiate their existing contract will management take similar pay cuts? That's certainly a reasonable request.

If the union agrees to renegotiate the existing contract will Delta still stay in business or will this just delay the inevitable? I don't know but that's a reasonable question. I don't think Delta can run deeply discounted flights from the NE to FL with the present price of jet fuel.

 

[grimley1968]

Well, as a student private pilot, I would love to have more instructors who have the time to spend with me getting me ready to go for an instrument rating. Looks like there will be a lot more pilots with lots of time on their hands very soon.

 

[snickerboo]

IMHO both sides stand a very good chance of winning the battle but losing the war. I really feel for the majority of the Delta employees whose futures will decided by the way this plays out and have absolutely NO say in what's going on....

Totaly agree.

 

[dozeman]

This makes me think the union's not getting anywhere with negotiatons and is very concerned the courts will rule against them - so they're stepping up the PR campaign...... IMHO both sides stand a very good chance of winning the battle but losing the war. I really feel for the majority of the Delta employees whose futures will decided by the way this plays out and have absolutely NO say in what's going on....

I agree, when the negotiations take place in the media it means they are stalled at the table.

 

[ducklite]

Does anyone know what the average age of Delta's pilots is? My guess is that many are nearing "retirement". Has Delta's retirement fund been stripped? Most of them have 20 years in as USAF pilots, thus will or are getting a military pension. If a larger percentage are clsoe to retirement age per Delta's retirement plan, they might actually have the last laugh, epecially if they've already got enough years in to qualify.

Think about it this way--enter USAF via ROTC program at 18. At 38 qualify for pension. Join Delta at 38. Fly 10 years. At that point they would likely be qualified for at least a partial pension. So a 48 year old pilot will be laughing all the way to the bank. He can then either spend his days fishing, or teaching or whatever. Many also are still USAFR, and will still fly one weekend a month--most likely as either a major or full bird, and be getting that income as well--which is not chump change.

Anne

 

[KerryCM]

My ex-DIL just called me from work, she is a gate agent at PVD. She told me to watch flights start being cancelled for no reason, pilots being sick, etc.
I have tickets for May 4th with Delta and she is going to let me know if she needs to refund them so I can get on another airline.
I feel so bad for all the employees. It will be disaterous for all.

 

[PlutoPony]

Have no idea as to the age/seniority skew of Delta's pilots but Anne's point is a good one. It wouldn't surprise me if most of the LLC pilot ranks are fairly senior, given there were many many furloughs over the last 10 years which probably have cleared out the bottom of the pilot ladder (don't think there have been that many call backs either). Most of the hiring over the last few years has been cargo not passenger related. So the idea of "forced retirement" may not be so bad - IF the pension funds are still intact - wish I knew their status. Anyone??

 

[ducklite]

And the 30,000 US citizen's facing unemployment make me wonder if Boy George and his flunkies will force a bailout or basically strongarm a institutional commercial loan package. Either way, as one of the oldest legacies, I think the writing is on the wall for Delta and they will join their Pan Am and Eastern brethren.

Anne

 

[PlutoPony]

Where will the political pressure come from to "bail out" Delta? Haven't done my homework to know who's holding Delta's DIP financing (isn't that what they're working off of now?) They're probably the key here and likely have some "friends" in the administration. But I'm pretty certain that whoever's financing Delta these days won't let them continue if the pilots don't go for significant cuts 'cause the company's just not a viable entity with their current cost structure. Don't think it's Delta's BOD really calling the shots here now, but rather whoever's got the purse strings. And even tho no airline has been "allowed" to fail thus far, it doesn't mean one won't in the future - at some point it's not worth it to throw any more good money after bad....

 

[DISNEYDUET]

My ex-DIL just called me from work, she is a gate agent at PVD. She told me to watch flights start being cancelled for no reason, pilots being sick, etc.
I have tickets for May 4th with Delta and she is going to let me know if she needs to refund them so I can get on another airline.
I feel so bad for all the employees. It will be disaterous for all.

Let us know! I have tickets for May 3-8!

 

[loveFL]

oh wow. we almost booked Delta for our trip next month, but instead booked Southwest. glad we did! I've always had good experiences with Delta, it'll be sad to see them go.

 

[ducklite]

Where will the political pressure come from to "bail out" Delta? Haven't done my homework to know who's holding Delta's DIP financing (isn't that what they're working off of now?) They're probably the key here and likely have some "friends" in the administration. But I'm pretty certain that whoever's financing Delta these days won't let them continue if the pilots don't go for significant cuts 'cause the company's just not a viable entity with their current cost structure. Don't think it's Delta's BOD really calling the shots here now, but rather whoever's got the purse strings. And even tho no airline has been "allowed" to fail thus far, it doesn't mean one won't in the future - at some point it's not worth it to throw any more good money after bad....

I believe GE Commercial Finance and Morgan Stanley hold most of it, with a branch of AMEX having a smaller piece. There are some easy to define ties between the current administration in Washington and Morgan Stanley, and to a lesser degree to GE. GE has a stake as a turbine engine builder as well--if Delta fails, any contracts they have outstanding for new planes with GE engines will be voided (I don't know if any exist--this is speculation on my part). COuld this afect possible military contracts? Who knows... There's a lot to look at and think about on the table with this one.

Anne

 

[PlutoPony]

Yeah, I was betting at least one of the GE arms had a piece of this. Wonder if any of the "holders of the purse strings" are putting any pressure on the pilot's union behind the scenes to modify their stance and get the contract resolved? I can't believe they'd sit back and just wait for Delta and the pilots to come to a resolution that essentially saves their investment, can you??

 

[CarolA]

Actually the avg age of the DL pilot probably is not as old as you might imagine. LOTS of them took early retirement last fall when they could take thier pension in cash and run. There have been several waves of that happening which have hit DL's senior pilot ranks pretty hard.

Plus remember pilots HAVE to retire at age 60 or 65 under federal law.