Yes, AA had plenty of notice...these pilots had been locked in to the Oct unit value for MONTHS. With the downturn of the stock market (and unit value), the writing was on the wall. To "unlock" and continue working, they ONLY had to notify their chief pilot's office on the last day of January.
The Aldrich quote was a little out of context. Sure, anybody can quit/retire any day of any month...but that is NOT realistic, and is not what happened last week.
In a rising market/unit value scenario, pilots can "re"lock into the new higher month's value, every month.
In the past, some have inadvertently "retired" themselves, by forgetting to properly notify their flight office w/i the 3 month deadline.
KC