A Qeustion For The Twu

[Bob Owens]

Come on TWU. Tell us how you told us to give away pay, holidays, sick time, vacation, IOD and scores of other concessions from the "Vermont PLan" but you managed to save your paychecks from the company that are in addition to what you make from the TWU!

Tell us how you saved jobs when in fact you saved your own excessive salaries!

Dont you feel that getting a paycheck from the company for doing UB is a conflict of interest? Didnt Dennis Burchette bring this up way back when the whole seperation thing was going on?

Why would an airline pay out millions in wages for union officers on UB? Because they probably got the best ROI on that investment than any other in their history! $1.7 million for $660,000,000+ in concessions! If only they could do as well on their other deals!!!!

We need a union that will work for the members-not for the company! We are forced to fork over our $9 million/yr, they dont have to do anything for it, but the $1.7 million that goes into their pockets-and is not reported on the LM-2, they have to work for. And they sure did a good job for the company didnt they? And the only way to get rid of these guys is to vote out the entire TWU. So what are you waiting for-AMFA and the AGW now!

still waiting!

 

[TWU informer]

Bob,

Could you please give me a more detailed explanation of this unreported money that AA is paying TWU Leadership?

I don't quite understand the details of how this happens.

Thanks

 

[Bob Owens]

Bob,

Could you please give me a more detailed explanation of this unreported money that AA is paying TWU Leadership?

I don't quite understand the details of how this happens.

Thanks

Prior to 1999 and the seperate locals Presidents were put on a union leave of abscence with a pay continuence, if that was agreed to. Under those conditions the President would still recieve a 40 hour paycheck from the company and then the company would bill the local for the gross amount plus around 9% for SSI and benifits.

With the start of all the small line locals however an agreement was made where the local no longer had to pay the company back. The company absorbed the Presidents 40 hour paycheck and continued to pay him at the rate he was getting as an employee.

However the number used during concessions is greater than the amount should be if just the 23 Presidents were collecting their 40 hour paychecks. There must be more people collecting checks.

Every two weeks the International forwards a copy of the payroll deducted dues to the Treasurer along with a check for 2/3s of the total dues(violation of the Constitution which states that the Locals get the money directly from the company then forwards the per capita to the International).

This report only reflects dues paid through payroll deduction.

After Bobby Gless became an International Rep his checkoff was still being reported on this report. So that means he was still getting a check from the company.

Coworkers at JFK who contacted Bobby Gless say that he said that he took a cut in pay also.

This would be consistant with the fact that he still collects a paycheck from American Airlines. A check that would not be reflected in the LM2 unless the TWU also had a disbursement to American Airlines reflecting the reimbursement, still there is the question over the companys list and the number of Presidents.

All that aside, if these guys are all collecting a 40 hour paycheck from the company, while not actually doing work on company property or in theory on behalf of the company, and also collecting substanbtial salaries-some in excess of six figures, from the union, arent they in fact double dipping? If not double dipping, couldnt it be reasoned that this was some sort of a bribe?

 

[TWU informer]

Hmmmm,

I am not sure, but that sounds extremely illegal to me.

 

[Bob Owens]

Hmmmm,

I am not sure, but that sounds extremely illegal to me.

Under the NLRA I think it is but I dont know about the RLA.

Maybe Seham should look into it?

 

[Bob Owens]

Still no reply from the TWU.

So the questions remain, and more come to mind.

If these guys were collecting a six figure salary in addition to getting paid for 40 hours by the company isnt that double dipping? Can they substantiate exactly how they performed 40 hours of service to the company while also collecting six figures from and working for the members?

Given the fact that there is no contractual basis compelling the company to pay all these salaries would the company have been within their rights to threaten to cancell all payments unless the Union officials agreed to give the company its entire $660 million in concessions? If the officials agreed to do this, for this reason wouldnt that be a DFR violation? If it could be proven, wouldnt this be grounds for challenging the contract?

Were we sold this contract, by far the worst in the industry, to not only protect dues flow, but to also preserve the company paid salaries, that are not reflected in the LM-2 to union officials?


Did Locals such as 514, adjust their Presidents salaries to take into account the companys payments for the President? In other words if Local 514 reported on their LM-2 that they paid the President $100,000/yr in 1998, then the company no longer required reimbursement in 1999 did the unions disbursement drop by that amount or did the President of Tulsa just get a $50,000 a year raise? The 2000 LM-2 should be around $50,000 less than the 1998 since the LM-2 only reflects what the Local paid out.

 

[mojo13]

email your question to the ATD

 

[Bob Owens]

email your question to the ATD

Why bother?

I know that they monitor this board. They testified to that at my Kangaroo court.

 

[Bob Owens]

I need to make a correction. The figure for what the company paid to union officials supposedly on "union business" was not $1.7 million, it was more, $3 million. $2 million from M&R and $1 million from the other departments.


Still no comment from the TWU?

 

[Bob Owens]

Still no comment from the TWU.

Did the International put such a hard sell, even saying that the company might go straight into liquidation if we did not accept this contract (something that even the company didnt even insinuate) in order to preserve their company paychecks?

 

[Hopeful]

Hey Bob, the lastest word out of Tulsa is that the TWU is telling the members that if AMFA gets in, Tulsa will essentially move to MCI. The TWU also reminded members that MCI is a 100% station.

 

[Bob Owens]

Hey Bob, the lastest word out of Tulsa is that the TWU is telling the members that if AMFA gets in, Tulsa will essentially move to MCI. The TWU also reminded members that MCI is a 100% station.

Ive been to MCI and to Tulsa.

MCI's AA facilities are closer in size to AA/JFK than to AA/Tulsa.

 

[Johnny Lunchbox]

Bob, from the looks of you, you've hit a McDonalds at a lot more stations than that. Miss that $800/mo. yet?

 

[Hopeful]

It's ashamed Lunchbox has to resort to personal insults in order to deflect his baseless defense of the TWU.

 

[Bob Owens]

Bob, from the looks of you, you've hit a McDonalds at a lot more stations than that. Miss that $800/mo. yet?

So you have been following this thread! Oh well with your track record at TWA I guess that you really dont have much to say about our twenty years of concessions, after all you guys made our agreements look good!