Well, the Eastern vote is in and (no surprises) it was voted up 91.8%.
This should in no way be seen as the Eastern pilot group endorsing the proposed package.
Far from it.
What it is, is Eastern pilots recognizing that we’ve been beaten. It’s a recognition that we’ll take what’s on offer because that’s all we’re going to get.
Unlike Sunstate pilots, management left Eastern pilots in no doubt that we’d have our backpay removed if we voted
NO. Backpay, added to the recent QF wide “bonus”, meant that a 7 year Eastern Captain had around $16,000.00 under threat.
The draft Eastern EBA was “Sunstate equivalent” conditions placed into the Eastern EBA. Since the Sunnies pilots voted their sub-standard EBA up, Qlink management felt that they only had to offer the same to Eastern pilots, take it or leave it.
We had a strong vote for PIA, but those of us who’ve been around long enough will remember what happened last time Eastern voted NO (anyone who wasn’t around then was reminded). And everyone should remember what happened to the Sunstate engineers.
IMHO, if the Eastern pilots voted NO, we’d be made an example of by QF management. Several months later we’d get an EBA very little improved from the current crap the Sunstate pilots accepted, and we’d lose back-pay. Looks like over 90% of Eastern pilots had the same opinion.
Unfortunately, when your pay isn’t that great to begin with, principals and morals have to sometimes take second place to the reality of paying off mortgages, bills, school fees, etc.
And there you have it: Ego and short-term greed drove the Sunstate EBA team to agree to a crap deal. The crap deal was voted up by greedy and short-sighted pilots.
That crap deal has now been
FORCED ONTO A DIFFERENT PILOT GROUP.
IMHO, the precedent set here will have far reaching implications. To name a few…
Sunstate pilots have successfully isolated themselves. I’d be surprised if there will be any co-operation between Eastern and Sunstate groups within the next ten years. There is no trust. Any joint co-operation will be futile because management will expect the Sunstate side to accept any deal for less than what Eastern are willing to accept, which will then be forced upon Eastern pilots.
Second, another B-scale has successfully been implemented within the Qantas group. In future Qlink EBAs this will be considered by management to be a starting point for further expansion, rather than something to be corrected. Expect any future payrises for Captains to be funded by the extension of the 55% FO wage for more than three years.
This may impact other Qantas pilot groups, as the FO "B-scale" will be presented to other pilot groups as an “Industry Standard”.
Thirdly, this result will have re-invigorated QF management love of Oldmeadow Consulting. Other pilot groups within the Qantas group can expect to see Ian across the table for the entirety of their negotiations.
Jetstar, QF shorthaul and Eastern just about got rid of Oldmeadow. Sunstate let him back in.
And lastly how about the AFAP? They’ve been seen as a scapegoat in all this by many of the pilots affected. There are both Sunnies and Eastern pilots looking elsewhere for membership. Ironic that an AFAP Vice President is party to a decision that undermines the union.
But what would I know?
I’m just “Pig Ignorant” according to such luminaries as
FUEL-OFF and
DISGRUNTLED POULTRY.
Funny, but I’ve spoken with Sunnies pilots (as well as Eastern pilots who’ve flown with Sunnies pilots) and the lack of knowledge regarding their own EBA was staggering.
Sunstate Captains who thought it was a crap EBA but voted yes. “Why?” “I just did.”
Sunstate Captains who voted YES because they would get a great pay rise, but couldn’t say how much except that “It was big.”
Sunstate pilots who think that the Eastern EBA result meant that the Eastern pilots thought it was a good deal.
But if you want an example of the sheer ignorance of a Sunstate pilot, just read this:
Di-Vosh and some of the others clearly have way too much time on their hands. It is sad that they can still be so emotional and vocal.
The Sunstate EBA has been voted up.
We get it that you dont agree, but its done now.
If you spent half as much time worry about Eastern reaching an agreed position than you have slandering and insulting your brethren up north - then perhaps you would have an agreement?
Time to move on.
Just a thought?
Clearly written by someone who simply does not understand how industrial negotiations are conducted at Qlink. Someone who’s never sat down opposite Qlink management in a negotiation. Someone who’s not read any of the Eastern updates. Someone who hasn’t got a clue.
If you’d bothered to read my other posts, you’d know that I’m not on the EBA team or Eastern council, though I’ve been on both in the past. I can tell you for a fact that only one Eastern EBA team member has posted on this thread (and only once) and that the number of other posts by Eastern council members is under five.
Seriously mate, you only embarrass yourself when you write stuff like that.
Psycho Joe (who compared us with his friends) and
Chazdat raised a good point regarding taking this argument elsewhere, but there is nowhere else.
Not QREWROOM. I’d be surprised if even half the Eastern/Sunstate pilots had QREWROOM ID’s, and the Qlink forum averages about one post per year.
Josh Cox started a combined EBA forum on FB, but there wasn’t much discussion on it. People had to post under their real names so it made it difficult for some people to hold a rational discussion. There were accusations of vindictiveness and harassment against Josh and myself, but personally I didn’t see any of it. There were a couple of Trolls. Once they were removed, no-one really bothered posting.
That left Prune.
If you don’t like, don’t read. Simple.
DIVOSH!