Broncofan

glad you said it. I enjoyed my time at SkyWest, and definately the best run management of all the regionals, and maybe majors as well. Just look at the ALPA regionals and see how they are doing comparatively. At the Majors, ALPA or a different union makes sense, at the regional level I'm not so sure.

Barley

If I’m given the choice between SkyWest and Mesa I’m choosing neither. I’m not providing these crap carriers with skilled labor for pennies. Let’s dump the kool-aid out. SkyWest is rewarded the most outsourced growth not because they’re managed any different than any other dumpster fire, but because they’ve convinced their pilots that they’re special. The pay, work rules, benefits, KCM access, etc.. at SkyWest are all direct results from investment of union pilots and their pattern bargaining. The denial and failing of such a large group of regional pilots has created a landscape where they enjoy continued outsourced growth from all majors while, in fact, suppressing upward pay for that industry and reducing leverage for mainline pilots to bring the flying back. Being at the top of the **** pile you encourage and feed isn’t anything to brag on.

N6279P

So you’re saying the same for most of Delta’s work groups too? Their mechanics, gate agents and ramp workers must be working for crap wages too because they don’t have a union? Please, give me a break. Funny how Delta didn’t send out any WARN notices to its inflight group. How could that be?? Not having a restrictive union is allowing everyone to stay employed.

Also, Skywest provides a much better product then CommutAir, Mesa and Gojet.

McNugent

🤢 give me a break dude. Lay off the St. George Koolaid. They provide contracted labor under the banner of other airlines. That is all.

Jersey

Sad truth is union shops whipped against each other = lowest bidder wins. No "union" going on there.

KnockKnock

Skywest also purchased, then dismantled both ASA and XJT at the cost of many union jobs. Each of those carriers had better contracts and pay at the time of purchase. So while Skywest may have a comparable contract and pay now, it was only after devouring two unionized companies that it achieved that. They have ridden ALPA’s coattails for decades.

N1CEandEZ

The ASA and XJT acquisition was a terrible investment for SKW INC, and CC had said he won’t make a decision like that again. And yes, it cost jobs unfortunately but that’s just the whipsaw nature of this industry and if there’s anybody to take your frustrations to it should be to UA/DL/AA. And don’t forget SKW offered soft-landings pay protection to any pilot who wanted to transition over - sure better than nothing.

Andy

Soo .... I guess Scott doesn't like RJs as much as has been previously stated?

FXLAX

No argument that Skywest has the best regional management. But the thing about a pilot union at a regional is more about being able to negotiate as good a contract during good times and minimize the pain during bad times. This is different at each regional. Some regionals have better management (Skywest), better fleet (Skywest), better revenue (Skywest), better profits (Skywest), than others. So each one has its own set of circumstances in which their pilots negotiate under. The better the circumstances, the better the results will be...if you have a union to use that leverage in order to negotiate. Some regional pilot groups are forced to negotiate against CEOs like JO or less established less profitable regionals like Colgan or commutair. It is true, the best thing for contract negotiations is always the profitability of the regional you work for. In this case, I would say that considering the circumstances of Skywest pilots since the 9/11 recovery, they should’ve done better than they have.

And don’t forget all the safety and security issues that ALPA, as a whole, takes initiative that Skywest pilots don’t contribute to.


SWA is the most unionized airline and they seem to do fine. As for non-union delta employees, they are forced to take whatever management gives them. So if management wants to lower their hours in order to be able to flex when demand increases, they just have to take it. Unlike the pilots who get to negotiate something that is more favorable to them. If you have no union, you have very little leverage to try to have a say in management’s decisions that may not completely overlap with your interests.


The fact that it may not have been a good investment (up for discussion), doesn’t counter the argument that Skywest dismantled two other regional airlines. When Skywest bought XJT, the combined pilot group (ASA + XJT) was about 4500 pilots and about 400+ aircraft. Skywest had about 2500 pilots and 250 aircraft. Five years later, those numbers were completely inverted and continued in that trajectory up until they sold off XJT. The whipsaw of these three airlines could’ve been prevented if Skywest pilots were unionized and advocated for one list as the pilots of ASA and XJT were fighting for. The jobs it cost were union jobs for non-union jobs, which could’ve been prevented in this one specific instance. One list could not have been prevented by AAL, DAL, or UAL in this one specific instance. Offering “soft landings” when one list was there for the taking seems rich coming from many Skywest pilot.

Barley

Yes, Delta’s non-union workgroups most certainly have baseline compensation that was built up off of union jobs at equivalent mainline union carriers. A rising tide (of union labor) has most certainly raised all boats.

Their groups took a 25%+ paycut to fund the departure of enough employees to TEMPORARILY avoid layoffs. Thank god my union didn’t allow that. How many times are we going to see that same trick pulled? But hey, you do you.

Never ceases to amaze me how many self-serving union-hating yokels take union jobs or in SKYW case (some not all) people that have zero respect or understanding for what unions have done that directly benefit them without ever paying a cent of dues.