AFA Anounces 94% Strike vote But leaves out actual numbers...Why?

[usfliboi]

94% Strike Vote Authorization of all fa's or those who voted?

November 20, 2012
Dear Flying Partners:
Today we voted 94 percent for strike authorization. Together we are calling on management to finish our US Airways/America West merger with a single contract for all US Airways Flight Attendants. AFA members made clear what we are willing to do to push management to negotiate a contract that can be ratified.
Our contract is long overdue. Parker and his team of negotiators have failed to negotiate a single contract that addresses the issues you have identified as paramount for a single agreement. Seven years after the supposed merger of America West and US Airways they still refuse to address your concerns. We may not fly together, but today we made clear that we would walk out together if we were released and Parker failed to reach an agreement with us.
None of us wants to strike. We want to work for a successful airline. And, we expect our share of the success of the airline. Let’s make no mistake – it will be incredibly difficult to get back to the negotiating table to reach an agreement. This strike vote can only be the beginning of management seeing US and hearing US Together.
The next step is to continue to speak with one voice. Our Joint Negotiating Committee will take our proposal for improved economics to the National Mediation Board – backed by this Strike Vote. Our collective job is to continue to back this up. Management needs to see every Flight Attendant with an AFA pin on and a “Strike Vote YES” sticker displayed on our bags. We will be pressing the NMB for additional mediation dates to reach an agreement you can ratify. And, we will update you on our discussions with the NMB.
There is no way to reach an agreement without your continued support and engagement in the process. If you are not already signed up for updates from ourafa.org, go there now and click on “Get E-lines” to subscribe. Sign up to be a part of our mobilization structure to get the information first and make the commitment to share it with your flying partners.
The decision to authorize a strike is not made lightly. You made a powerful statement with your vote and our work together is not done. Let us continue to show our unity and take action together. Management should see and hear nothing but: US Together.
In Solidarity,
Deborah Volpe, President
AFA US Airways-West MEC Roger Holmin, President
AFA US Airways-East MEC

 

[usfliboi]

The company has made two offers in which our AFA reps agreed to and the group voted down! AFA has put its members in a corner with no solution in sight other than a merger with AA! Even Ms Campbell encouraged a "Yes" vote on the last offer. Yet AFA now says its our bad bad company who isnt willing to give AFA what we desere.. So why didnt they fight harder instead of giving up only to take it to this? If anyone believes that our group can and will afford an actual strike are in fantasy land! This will not work! As i said before.....watch and learn! AFA is playing CYA and has snookered its members in to believing a strike wouldnt proceed ..just to send a message! A message was sent alright...AFA 's and unions days are numbered! The message the company will get is it has this union in a corner! Good luck AFA I for one will vote for another union when the time comes!

 

[Toothy Grin]

Voting results by base should be available later this afternoon.

 

[freedom]

a Strike without full support from it's memebers is both foolhardy and doomed to failure ....

wow i can't beleive their going through with this ...i'm suprised your leadership didn't just wait a few more months to see what is happening with AA ...

well i guess this will mean more overtime for the FA's who don't join your strike .....

 

[SparrowHawk]

Voting results by base should be available later this afternoon.

Help me out here please.

If my understanding of the RLA the strike vote is essentially meaningless at this time? Except as a PR mechanism to get negotiations restarted?

So what would have to happen before US Airways F/A's would be allowed to implement CHAOS?

 

[jimntx]

More than anything else, it is a symbolic gesture. And, like most symbolic gestures, it can be viewed as an exercise in futility. Which, at this point, it is. However, a high percentage of union members voting for a strike if called should get the attention of both the company and the NMB. Not only can the company not guarantee that the NMB will never release the flight attendants into the self-help period, the company also can not guarantee that the President would issue an Executive order blocking a strike (for 30 days),

The NMB at some point risks becoming irrelevant if the union members decide to ignore the law and just walk out. They can play the game that the company is bargaining in good faith or that the union is not bargaining in good faith only so long. And, if the flight attendants just walk out, the planes stay on the ground.

AFAIK, no union is "allowed to implement" CHAOS. CHAOS is designed to disrupt operations without a formal strike being called. The philosophy is that the company can neither afford flight attendants walking off of scheduled flights without advance warning nor can they effectively punish the walk-offs because they are happening at sufficient frequency that the "punishment" requirements of the CBA become overwhelming. About the best the company could do would be withhold pay for the disrupted/cancelled flight, but they do that anyway; so, it's not a major issue to most flight attendants. And, different flight attendants on different flights on different days at different times are used each time a walk-off occurs. 'At's why they call it CHAOS.

 

[700UW]

Hey fliboi,

Doug tell you your talking points?

How is the Tempe Koolade?

 

[usfliboi]

Hey fliboi,

Doug tell you your talking points?

How is the Tempe Koolade?

No my little friend....it truly is "common sense" and factual! Fact..We can not strike...fact... we have been given 2 ta's that we have turned down...fact.... union membership has dropped year over year for several years however non union companies continue to thrive and their employess do quite well i might add! So here we are in a corner... a corner our union tossed us into! You keep to your facts Ill read off mine ! Oh...FACT we still dont have a contract! ........ So the wittle message has been sent to the big bad company that signs your paycheck...Oh well..I guess they got the message lol!

PS Still no final count from the union from the "electronic" voting process!

 

[700UW]

First of all non-union and union membership has no bearing on a strike vote or US.

Second of all you do have a CBA, and you are currently working under it, CBAs in the airline industry dont expire, they become amendable, you were in negotiations for a combined CBA.

The membership spoke twice, accept what the company offered wasnt sufficient for the majority of the FAs.

And gee your days of Ms Cleo are over as you predicted wrong that the first TA would pass with flying colors, how did that work out for you?

And the strike vote with its high percentage sends a message to the company and the NMB, but since you are a company boi, I wouldnt expect you to understand that concept.

 

[signals]

No my little friend....it truly is "common sense" and factual! Fact..We can not strike...fact... we have been given 2 ta's that we have turned down...fact.... union membership has dropped year over year for several years however non union companies continue to thrive and their employess do quite well i might add! So here we are in a corner... a corner our union tossed us into! You keep to your facts Ill read off mine ! Oh...FACT we still dont have a contract! ........ So the wittle message has been sent to the big bad company that signs your paycheck...Oh well..I guess they got the message lol!

PS Still no final count from the union from the "electronic" voting process!

Who would have thought that there would be an US version of southwind

 

[signals]

a Strike without full support from it's memebers is both foolhardy and doomed to failure ....

wow i can't beleive their going through with this ...i'm suprised your leadership didn't just wait a few more months to see what is happening with AA ...

well i guess this will mean more overtime for the FA's who don't join your strike .....

I knew there was an ameteur-ish WT

 

[usfliboi]

First of all non-union and union membership has no bearing on a strike vote or US.

Second of all you do have a CBA, and you are currently working under it, CBAs in the airline industry dont expire, they become amendable, you were in negotiations for a combined CBA.

The membership spoke twice, accept what the company offered wasnt sufficient for the majority of the FAs.

And gee your days of Ms Cleo are over as you predicted wrong that the first TA would pass with flying colors, how did that work out for you?

And the strike vote with its high percentage sends a message to the company and the NMB, but since you are a company boi, I wouldnt expect you to understand that concept.

ROFL I am happy to say I get what owning a company means...Can you?> 6.5 hours later and still no "real numbers"

 

[Toothy Grin]

Usfliboi, oh for the sake of jeebus...you're leaving the biggest skidmark on this thread over this....

All bases came in at 93% and change with the exception of Charlotte which came in at 94% and change. This is not the Olympics so I won't post the "point 5, etc."

I shall now swim off to do some super cool meditation/cosmic explorations ~

 

[700UW]

ROFL I am happy to say I get what owning a company means...Can you?> 6.5 hours later and still no "real numbers"

Keep avoiding what people ask of you and your posts feed right into why you dont have a new CBA, you dont even know the company uses people like you and you think they like you.

 

[usfliboi]

Keep avoiding what people ask of you and your posts feed right into why you dont have a new CBA, you dont even know the company uses people like you and you think they like you.

They dont use me...I agree with them! 8 hours 25 mins... no response from AFA on the break down numbers! How many voted and what was the break down...Why? 94 % of 6700 voted yes for a strike or 94% of those who voted?