Union Resurgance

[JoeMerchant]

Funny what people complain about....I've seen crewmembers complain about gas prices while holding a $3.00 cup of Starbucks....If you are willing to pay $3 bucks for a cup of coffee...then you really shouldn't complain about gas prices......

Bottled water and Starbucks cost more than oil....

 

[waveflyer]

each of those starbucks are made to order-- gas is gas-- i can live w/o starbucks- but our government has set up a transportation infrastructure where we cannot make a living or function in our economy w/o oil... that's what makes the price so important... We should be investing in a better transportation system. One things for sure- this'll put the brakes on sprawl if it keeps up.

 

[Carl_Spackler]

I'd love to see where you got that number. B/c you're saying that for every minwage household making $25k/year- there is 1 making $75k/year... and i don't believe that.

Why is it so hard to believe? Libs would have you believe that every minimum wage earner is supporting a family of 5. That is not the case. As I stated, it's very likely that the minimum wage earner is not the only income earner in the house.

http://www.heritage.org/Research/Economy/wm1186.cfm

 

[PCL_128]

Libs would have you believe that every minimum wage earner is supporting a family of 5. That is not the case.

It doesn't matter if every one of them is. Some of them are. Everyone who works for a living deserves to make enough to support themselves and their families. Everyone who works for a living deserves affordable health care for themselves and their families. I don't care about those who don't work, but those who do work shouldn't be forced to live in poverty.

 

[Carl_Spackler]

It doesn't matter if every one of them is. Some of them are. Everyone who works for a living deserves to make enough to support themselves and their families.

Do you think an 18 year old with a non working wife and 2 kids should be able to support themselves on 40 hours a week at the BK lounge? Some people just do not have the skills or motivation to demand more than the minimum wage.

Or we could raise the minimum wage to $20/hr, that will solve poverty. Your fantasy utopia will never happen. There will always be poor people.

 

[Soverytired]

What we need is a general 1 day strike and shut the entire airline system down. Only that way would there be enough outrage to force the politicians to start managing the national transportation system instead of wringing their hands and complaining.

I don't care much for ALPA or labor unions in general, but I have to admit that this is something I'd like to see.

What are the feds going to do? Put a Letter of Warning in the file every participant? Talk about a badge of honor.

Ultimately though, this would require inspired leadership and clearly stated objectives. This is where it would get really murky, really fast. 10,000 pilots = 15,000 different agendas, and all that.

 

[800Dog]

It doesn't matter if every one of them is. Some of them are. Everyone who works for a living deserves to make enough to support themselves and their families. Everyone who works for a living deserves affordable health care for themselves and their families. I don't care about those who don't work, but those who do work shouldn't be forced to live in poverty.

If you do not make enough $ to support a family, do not have kids. Problem solved. It is called personal responsibility! Don't expect others to pay for your lousy decisions.

 

[Lear70]

Do you think an 18 year old with a non working wife and 2 kids should be able to support themselves on 40 hours a week at the BK lounge? Some people just do not have the skills or motivation to demand more than the minimum wage.

Or we could raise the minimum wage to $20/hr, that will solve poverty. Your fantasy utopia will never happen. There will always be poor people.

That is a simple, unfortunate, fact.

My wife has been working the same job for 7 years. She makes $15 an hour without a degree. As a single parent, before we got together, she wasn't making enough to pay for everything, yet didn't qualify for any government programs because she made too much.

The sad fact is that, for many people, not working and getting food stamps and unemployment pays just as much as working. I'm torn between the idea of ending government handouts for people who won't get a job and realizing that, even if they get a job, they end up working their butts off and still can't pay their bills.

 

[HalinTexas]

No one makes minimum wage unless they want to.

My 19 year old step-son hasn't finished high school yet. He's going to summer school for one class. He was held back in the 3rd grade. He has a learning disability. He's a moron. Not because of the disability, but because he doesn't care to do anything about it. He's on his fourth p.t. job. He's never made minimum wage. He's always made more. Now, he's working at Home Depot making $8.50/hr, techically p.t. but working over 30 hours/week sometimes. He qualifies for their medical and retirement plans.

I'll say it again. My stepson is an unmotivated individual with a learning disability and has never made minimum wage.

I'm an unemployed pilot, former ATA, and I don't blame anyone for the airline's demise except managment.

 

[PCL_128]

Do you think an 18 year old with a non working wife and 2 kids should be able to support themselves on 40 hours a week at the BK lounge?

Yes. I don't expect them to make enough money to have a new car and a fancy apartment, but they should make enough money to feed, clothe, and shelter their family. They should have health insurance to protect the health of their family. No one who works for a living should live in poverty.