IAM grievance hearing today?

There is no doubt the union would love to get more bodies back to increase their payroll, I'm no fan of the IAM but they really don't have anything to do with setting head count levels, contractually I don't think there is much the company can do to get rid of any more mechanics they can't get people to come back or hire them as it stands now, could be the IAM wants you to beleive that if they don't negotiate 1000 could hit the street so they save face who knows. The thing to remember here is the arbitration is no guarantee, so is it better to gamble the whole thing and lose or use it as a tool to get back some of what was lost, some will say we should be able to get back what was lost and be awarded the grievance and I don't disagree when the company continues to make money on the backs of labor the only people rewarded are the execs and thats not right who knows how this is going to play out but it should be intresting please feel free to respond and say what you think will happen!

Well if you are to believe that words out of Doug's mouth the change of control has always been on the table. The problem is what the union thinks it worth and what the company thinks its worth. According to Doug its worth little. So why not let the grievance/arbitration play out?

The 1000 number didn't come from the union side..but you never know never know what goes on behind closed doors and to think headcount doesn't come into play in negotiations is naive at best.
 
What is IAM’s time line on the arbitration and if awarded when do the members expect to see the award? And is IAM schedule to negotiate with management before the arbitration hearing? And if so is IAM negotiating with the change of control on the table?

There is nothing to negociate.

If the gievance goes the M&R favor we are all sked. for a raise, maybe even retro.
After this is won and our wages and benefits increase then negociate a transition agreement.

Take care of what you have and have taken a beating.

To do otherwise, will not be acceptable, and might cause members to take the union to court for "NON REPRESENTAION"
 
A radical shift in the labor movement is needed for solidarity. Unfortunately, it doesn't appear such a thing can exist in a 'self grata' culture.

regards,

Told you before oh great one....not with these wimpy azzed unionists in this lifetime.Maybe you go across the pond and dine with Lech Walesa. :lol:
 
What is the reason union membership is down in the US when executive compensation is at an all time high and workers have seen their wages plummet? Have the corporations been doing a better job spinning the effects of why you shouldn't belong to a union, I think so! A major problem with organized labor is that they aren't organized at all! You need to look no further than what happened at NWA! Instead of unions working togather for a common cause of fighting an injust coroporation you had a union more than willing to perform another groups work! Obviously the unions need dues to survive but when they start screwing members to salvage those dues at all cost your members are going to start asking the question what am I paying dues for. I am speaking only now for the IAM but how many times have you seen a local lodge president interviewed by the media and he looked about as professional as the guy they just interviewed from the mobile home court who just witnessed a tornado(no offense to those who live in a mobile home court) If I work somewhere and see that guy on TV I'm thinking what an idoit! Then you have the classic case of doing exactly the opposite of what your members want you to do, case in point the profit sharing, could of and should of been handled differently. In my opinion for labor unions to survive in this country they are going to have to start working togather with the other unions put a plan in place and stop worrying about which union is going to represent who just as long as they are represented! The leaders are going to need to be more accessiable and start getting the message out loud and clear!! I hear you guys constantly rant about how nobody attends monthly meetings, instead of figuring out ways to get the information to the members you belittle them for not attending, not to excuse it but how many mechanics commute to PHL, CLT, DCA but lets not worry about that just attack the members for not attending! We don't live in 1960 anymore and times are changing the unions are going to have to as well, have the unions ever stopped to wonder that maybe the problem is with them, union membership is down what are the Leaders of those unions going to do to stop it, keep doing the same thing and I think we all know whats gonna happen. Hopefully now that things are starting to get a little better in the airline industry the LEADERS want be so quick to bend over for the company, because when the LEADERS bend over the MEMBERS do as well!
 
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Great Post Dell, ITS THE TRUTH PEOPLE,WHAT IS THE ANSWER?
Thats the ?
MWW
Unions have to re-legitimate themselves but this is proving to be a very difficult task considering the template the unions have fashioned and placed over themselves. A new paradigm is a requirement.

Nonetheless, if I had to say I would say 'self grata' and education are two of the biggest reasons for failed solidarity. Without solidarity, unions are worthless.

1. Self grata: To be sure, this has affected every institution in our culture.

In the airlines, it means every station will vote for what benefits that particular station. Sacrifice is not intended today. Hubs will vote for what benefits the hub, small stations will vote for what benefits them. Unions and companies know this so they fashion contracts intended to divide workers just enough to pass a contract.

Likewise, the institutional unions also practice 'self grata'. There is little dispute that 141 will enter concessionary mode and try to pick up more members by throwing out the members right to arbitration. Today, unions are all about getting more members and they don't give a rat's ass about what's fair. If more members means another sellout then consider it done.

There are exceptions but they are becoming more and more distant. When Charlie Bryan and the IAM went on strike at Eastern, they knew they would lose their job but they sacrificed for the entire industry to help preserve industry jobs by standing up to corporate greed. Many Eastern mechanics were able to move on to other airlines and get gainful employment where they could continue to raise their families. Eastern was lost, but the industry wages were preserved, and every airline welcomed former eastern employees.

2. Education
I've seen good honest blue collar working men get appointed union positions, go to the union's education facility and get ruined by the langauge and techniques of the white collar man. Perhaps they get ruined by greed and high salaries but I still think it starts with the training.
In short, the training is profane.
They are trained to serve the high priest called cooperation. To die for cooperation. Don't get me wrong, cooperation in itself isn't inherently evil but when it is served as an end, it is evil for sure. And those that serve it become its mouthpiece.

I would like to add that the 'dues checkoff' should be considered as one variable that has kept workers away from the local hall and has decreased the needed participation that perhaps Delldude is referring to. I know the unions thought it would be a good idea for both the union and worker but IMO it has had a negative effect.
Before the dues checkoff clause became legal [taft hartley?] workers had to go to the local hall to pay their dues, and they were more involved in meetings. It also gave the company the leverage it needed since the unions became more dependable on the companies willignness to include dues checkoff articles in contracts.

Anyways, difficult discussion indeed.

regards,
 
Tim, Fanlube, excellent posts! Great discussion. We are living in a time of catastrophic devaluing of our labor ( meaning our product or work ). In order to fit us into the "global" market, we had to be valued down to compete. I don't like it, for me, for my children, for my grand children...... Our unions, to me, seem like a great fighter that was so successful he could sit back and get rich off the royalties of books, films, t-shirts, etc.. Over time he got out of shape and forgot how to fight and now dosn't want to. We really need to get this guy back in shape.
 
The bottom line is for change to happen and the union to get tough, you all need to get involved to make and force change instead of being apathetic and just throwing stones.
 

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