Sorry, I didn't mean to imply any unfounded optimism about a future of dealing with CX management in my previous post. My only point was that "poisionous management/labor relations" have become par for the course in more places than one might think. UA management essentially ran the company into the ground as fast as they could post-9/11 in order to take advantage of the freedoms allowed managers under bankruptcy protection, such as tearing up all of the employee contracts. They did such a great job of it that their plan became the model for management crews all around the US airline industry, until the feds caught on and made it clear that other managers would not get carte blanche to the extent that UA's did.
So you know where I'm coming from, my father retired against his will from UA in 2003. He has lost his pension, stock fund, and medical benefits, and is now at the age of 63 desperately seeking employment in India, which is getting harder for old American pilots than one would think. UA management's political maneuvering has ensured that fictional 500000USD-a-year senior captains and pensioners took the lion's share of the blame for the bankruptcy, and the other labor groups and the flying public still believe the story to some extent. I watched the decay and collapse of the company starting in the mid-90's, and my friends among the current line pilots see no signs of improvement. The UA of today is a shell of what it once was - a situation to which unhappy CX pilots can probably relate. I think any hope for improving conditions at UA in the immediate future is optimistic, probably even more so than at CX. I don't imagine I'll be too disappointed with management at CX if I should ever make it there. Despite my age and inexperience, my expectations are already pretty low.
I don't think you're right in adding me to a list of UA haters, I simply have first-hand dealings with the current incarnation of the company, which is something I'm glad you've managed to avoid. You are dead on about UA crews being class acts, as their pilots, mechanics, and flight attendants are still some of the best in the industry despite all that's happened. I grew up emulating them, and I would be the last person here to say anything bad about them - part of why I have problems with their management. You're not at all obligated to care about the pay and/or pensions at UA, but I'm sad to say that the company you remember doesn't really exist any more. I would even be inclined to think that it's now making CX look decent by comparison, but I know I'm speaking from a position of no real experience.
Last edited by thepotato232; 5th Mar 2007 at 06:03.