RE: Somthing to ponder !! " Is it possible, just maybe, that the pilots have had it too good, for too long, and when it came time to make a few sacrifices, in order to ensure the airlines sustainability, they were perhaps, not ready to spoil a good thing. To have the corporation answer to them for approval, before expediting a business plan, is a little over the top, one would think. When you look at the hourly pay table and fringe benefits of a pilot, in relation to any other company employee, they really are not that hard done by. "
Is it possible, just maybe, that you have no idea what you are talking about? You want to talk about sacrifices? How about the 30% cut in wages and benefits the pilots took back in 2004 - "in order to ensure the viability of the company". That was the promise - that the concessions would ensure the viability of the company, so the pilots believed the company's claim and gave HUGE concessions. What happened - a $100 million to Milton and billions to Cerberus et all. Now we're back in the same place with the company making the same claim - anyone surprised that the pilots are just a little skeptical?
You obviously have no concept, at all, what is involved in the job nor do you have any idea what the actual payscale is for an Air Canada pilot. A new pilot makes $39K/year. This is someone who may have spent close to $100K on their education and training or perhaps they spent years as a military pilot flying combat missions. The wide body Capts do make over $200k/year but remember that these fine gentlemen have over 30 years of service and are responsible for a $200 million dollar asset and the lives of several hundred passengers and crew while flying over the north pole and down through Russian airspace toward China. They're worth every penny they get.
The latest contract proposal from the company wants to lock-in a payscale for new pilots of less than $50K/year for the first 4 years. A cadet-in-training for the Toronto police services makes $54K/year. A TTC bus driver makes about $55K/year. Does anyone honestly believe that an airline pilot is only worth the same as a bus driver?