Contract Violation By The Twu

[AA Dispatch]

We have several people in Dispatch who have either just returned from Overage Leave or are still on Overage Leave. An Overage Leave is described in Article 17 of every TWU contract on AA property as a “leave of absence without pay.â€￾ They have all received bills for past union dues while they were on Overage Leaves, and are being told by the local 542 treasurer that if they don’t pay, they will be terminated under the provisions of Article 38. The rationale that the TWU is using to justify their actions is this letter from Gary Yingst:

This is in direct conflict with Article 38 paragraph (d) in every TWU contract at American Airlines, which states:

“Employees who are or become members of the Union under paragraphs (a) or (b) above will pay membership dues as set forth in this Article, except that payment for membership dues will not be required as a condition of employment during leaves of absence without pay or during periods of transfer to a classification or position not covered by this Agreement.â€￾

The way I read this, a provision of the contract has been violated by the TWU. The TWU Constitution, under Article XIX Discipline, gives a list of reasons for bringing charges against a member. Section 5 paragraph (a) states that a charge can be brought for “violation of any provisions of this Constitution, any collective bargaining agreement, or working rule of the Local Union.â€￾

There is a letter from an International representative advocating the abrogation of a provision in a collective bargaining agreement, and a local treasurer who has been issuing bills for past dues in violation of a provision in the contract. I think charges are in order.

 

[Bob Owens]

We have several people in Dispatch who have either just returned from Overage Leave or are still on Overage Leave. An Overage Leave is described in Article 17 of every TWU contract on AA property as a “leave of absence without pay.â€￾ They have all received bills for past union dues while they were on Overage Leaves, and are being told by the local 542 treasurer that if they don’t pay, they will be terminated under the provisions of Article 38. The rationale that the TWU is using to justify their actions is this letter from Gary Yingst:

This is in direct conflict with Article 38 paragraph (d) in every TWU contract at American Airlines, which states:

“Employees who are or become members of the Union under paragraphs (a) or (B) above will pay membership dues as set forth in this Article, except that payment for membership dues will not be required as a condition of employment during leaves of absence without pay or during periods of transfer to a classification or position not covered by this Agreement.â€￾

The way I read this, a provision of the contract has been violated by the TWU. The TWU Constitution, under Article XIX Discipline, gives a list of reasons for bringing charges against a member. Section 5 paragraph (a) states that a charge can be brought for “violation of any provisions of this Constitution, any collective bargaining agreement, or working rule of the Local Union.â€￾

There is a letter from an International representative advocating the abrogation of a provision in a collective bargaining agreement, and a local treasurer who has been issuing bills for past dues in violation of a provision in the contract. I think charges are in order.

The dues is two times your hourly pay per month. If you had no pay,in other words "0" dollars per hour, then 2 times zero is zero.