Plane Answers: Why can't airlines wait at the gate vs. in a queue on the taxiway?

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Why did the flight crew unions ever agree to not getting paid until you push back from the gate? You all should get paid from the time you hit the doors at the airport. Or better yet a straight salary. Then it wouldn't matter when you pushed off.

10-12-2009 @ 4:37PM

Jeff Patterson said...

For the same reason that the railroad unions negotiated these type of agreements: it's a great way to milk some good hourly pay. On the railroad it's not call pushback time. It's initial terminal time. They get a certain rate for mileage, per 100 miles.if you get delayed before you get outside agreement limits ( which can be 5 miles or more ) you go on hourly pay and you might sit hours waiting for a highball. We always prayed for snowstorms or delays to hold us up and make that extra cash.

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