Originally Posted by SAABaroowski
The problem with MESA is that the pilots continue to work for a scumbag CEO who said, "as long as resumes keep passing by my desk I am paying pilots to much" Would you respect anybody that works for somebody like that?
And I'm sure that EVERY regional CEO says the same thing about their pilots. JO may have been the one reported to have said it, but don't think for a moment that every CEO out there isn't wondering to himself "man, I can't believe that I've got a pile of resumes for pilots wanting to work for the wages I pay". We're ALL underpaid...from first year FO's to Captains! Who here hasn't told a friend (outside of aviation) what they make, and the friend (in utter disbelief) responding "HOLY *******!...I thought you made at least 6 figures!".
SAAB, don't start with this "how can you respect someone who works for Mesa" stuff, because even you are contributing to the problem. Everyone is, for that matter. If we collectively had any "respect" for ourselves, we wouldn't be working at the regionals altogether. With the amount of training we have, time and money invested, making $20K a year to start is simply criminal. In short, until NO resumes are on a regional CEO's desk, the problems will continue.
Now, back to the original question, Mesa sucks due to (primarily) a ********y contract. I wasn't around when the contract was signed, but in order to educate myself, I ask practically every Captain I fly with "why in the world did you guys sign this POS?" (and with 87% in favor!!!). Responses vary, but the majority blame it on an incredibly spineless MEC (who, thankfully, and after many attempts, were removed from office several months ago) and, of course, Freedom A. Essentially, JO was ready, and willing, to move all flying to the newly-created, alter-ego, union-busting Freedom Airlines (ala GoJet). If the pilots and ALPA/MEC weren't willing to concede on practically all issues, JO didn't care, and would transfer flying to his non-union brainchild. End of story. Obviously, this would have resulted in immediate furloughs, and a strike was not possible due to not meeting some "cooling off" period/guideline in the RLA (I can't elaborate on that, because I really don't know exactly what the law states)
There's a lot more to the story, but that's at least a summary of why the contract was signed. Personally, I think they should have all said "******* you", and walked away. But I guess facing unemployment in the post-9/11 era made that a more difficult choice. Mesa signing this contract not only screwed the pilots, but ended up screwing the regional industry as a whole. All succeeding contracts that were up for renewal had CEO's banging Mesa's contract on the table saying "Mesa does it for THIS!...we expect the same from you". The phrase (Mesa) "lowered the bar" speaks directly to this, as well as the animosity toward the pilots. And rightfully so.
One thing I know for sure is this: I don't think the pilots had any clue back then as to just how BAD this contract was going to turn out to be. Sure, it's spelled out in black-and-white (and that should be bad enough) but what really makes the contract suck are phrases such as "to the extent possible", and "at the company's discretion". Instead of concrete language, these phrases allow for the company to evolve the contract to their liking. And even though the pilots are expected to professionally honor the contract, management (and crew tracking, scheduling, payroll, etc) uses ploys such as the aforementioned phrases to continually violate the contract.
Having friends at other regionals, I know for sure that there is not the same type of management vs. pilot animosity/hatred (at least at some, such as CHQ, SkyWest, XJT). That is what, in my opinion, really sets Mesa apart (along with, obviously, the contract, beat-up airplanes, improper staffing, etc). Mesa pilots are trying to make changes and force the company to comply with the contract, and management views this stance as a hostile agenda. As such, along with violating the contract, they have resorted to punishing us with excessive JRA's, inefficent trip pairings, minimizing contractual days off and uncommutable lines...the list goes on and on to punish our QOL's. This has all contributed to extreme morale problems with all Mesa crewmembers, and attrition that even the likes of Mesa has never seen before.
In short (sorry for the rant...for those of you that continued to read this) Mesa is a horrible place to work right now. Period.
(SIDENOTE: for those reading this and asking "well, why did you go to Mesa in the first place", please read my previous posts 
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