My name is Ray Rajas and proxy for Dan and Michelle Richardson representing 747 cheers, the only judge Kendall in 1999 ordered the pilots to go back to work. He made a statement, and he said if you would look up bad labor relations in the dictionary, you would have an American Airlines logo beside you, so I have to ask some questions here.
Today, before I can cast my ballot for the election of directors last year at Mr. Parker, you made over 18 million dollars, Mr. Wharton took a 19 million dollars home and Dan gotten, who was the president of American Eagle compensation that was more than 10 million dollars. Now I’m not sure if the information I have is correct, but according to now in the proxy, because you are also board of directors who take care of it very well.
I think all of them also have other outside income and serve the other boards as well. Now I read an article in the coast of world and I got to find out if what they said is true. They said that the American offered its pilots at American envoy a 10-year contract, and they were seeking 43 million dollars concessions or pay cuts.
Now the new pilots would make twenty three thousand dollars a year and the ten-year contract would enable pilots to make up to thirty eight thousand dollars, there would be a cap after four years. Now I know that the pilots had received some meaningful raises since 2004 and the pilot training costs can exceed a hundred thousand dollars now.
Is it true that an American Airlines pilot at one of your invasion four-year feeder airlines would start out at 23,000 year and will be cat by 38,000 and that would be part of a ten-year contract? Is that what 2,700 pilots were asked to vote on which they turned down overwhelmingly? And is it true that these facts which was printed in the Costa newspaper are true ?
Another question is that, we are at the end of this that is going to have a good presentation and happy to answer all business related questions right now. So I’m happy with the question of the nominees, so we can get through the formal part of reading. There is plenty of time afterwards for all sorts of business related questions.
I’m not sure about whether the Tulsa World facts are exactly right, but what I do know is that as it relates to the Envoy pilots we ask, we put forward a proposal that would make the Envoy airline competitive with other providers, and they elected not to ratify that agreement, which is their choice and that’s where we are, we are important part of the airline.
They will be an important part of the airline, but they were given a proposal that they rejected. How can American justify? I gave an example. I fly quite a bit, so I had to take a commuter airline, it’s for some years ago. I flew into Missouri and I had to get over to Illinois. I got on a commuter and I was sitting right for fun, and I noticed this is no lie.
Now that the pilots were nodding off to my chagrin, I just said five better speak up, which I did and I found out at that time from those pilots that they are making. I think it was between 14 and 16 thousand dollars a year now. There are American Airlines, that’s a pretty proud name like flowing American a lot right. When I look at these kind of offers, I have to think of it as a McDonald’s airline or a burger king, your life is not an American Airline.
How can you justify when you consider what the directors in the top executives are getting? How can you justify a contract offered like that? Now I know you have three feet or airlines and what I would probably look at and see what’s happening. Now there’s going to be, none of the employees within the American system, I mean some of the Alliance used to set up a non-union account double-breasted outfit right.
Now it seems to be more internal. How nice the board of directors, how can you justify off in a contract like that to any employees, how do you justify it? I’m going to have to refer to American as McDonald’s.
We justified based upon first person for most of the pilots and all the professionals in American Airlines are extremely competent in professional aviators, who take their jobs really seriously and do it exceptionally, extremely safely and we’re extremely proud of the job they do.
And it includes those that we use to provide our regional flights as well. So we’re extremely proud of and pleased with the qualifications and safety qualifications of the employees we have. As to that contract, we put forward to cut, we put forward a proposal which our pilot rejected, which is completely their prerogative. Other airlines had the same contract and other similar terms.
And the obligee chose not to accept those terms, so that they’re living under their current contract and we’re a body by the contract. And as we bring on new flights, they may go to different airlines that have different terms. So today, you have not justified that contract or those policies. Some sort of pilots, I can’t imagine what the flight attendants and a ground crew are making.
How do you live on that? That’s what’s happening in our society. Today, corporate executives like American Airlines, coca-cola and Chevron are so greedy, that’s what’s probably the problem out in the world. Today, I think you ought to look at yourselves in the mirror, thinking about what you’re doing to the American society into the American worker look. And ask yourselves whether you are proud to do this, because I am sure it wouldn’t be like that if I were in your position.