Mergers are good...Yeah...RIGHT

[us45366]

Bottom line...the ONLY reason upper Management and Wall Strret want a merger is because both of them get to line their already overflowing pockets even more...While the NWA corporate Bobbleheads sprew their happy vomit to the media about how WONDERFUL it will be for the consumer and it's investors, every consumer knows that their airfares will go up...lines will get longer, options will become less...and customer service (which is already the PITS) will go in the toilet. And...of course... upper Management will get to cash in those FAT "options" that were "FORCED" onto them by their buddies (the Wall Street bankers) who backed them...

http://www.smartertravel.com/travel-advice...mp;u=398F43511A

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/17/business...ml?ref=business

 

[robbedagain]

if mergers were right, how about asking the former TWA employees who got shafted just cuz wall street thinks with fat wallets doesnt mean that the true mergers will make sense both short or long term and the only ones who ever really make it out good are the idiots at the top running the airlines and investors

 

[signals]

if mergers were right, how about asking the former TWA employees who got shafted just cuz wall street thinks with fat wallets doesnt mean that the true mergers will make sense both short or long term and the only ones who ever really make it out good are the idiots at the top running the airlines and investors

 

[signals]

Mergers may not always be a good thing for employees. There are too many conflicts of interests. There are questions as to whether employees maintain their seniority...that is if they are still union.

What happens if one airline's employees are union and the others aren't?

 

[us45366]

Mergers may not always be a good thing for employees. There are too many conflicts of interests. There are questions as to whether employees maintain their seniority...that is if they are still union.

What happens if one airline's employees are union and the others aren't?

Well...if the Union in question is the IAM...you have to remember...that was the union that was collecting dues (every month from it's members) that rolled over and played "good dog" when NWA said it was gonna "outsource" ** 70 ** of it's stations.... ask the people in THOSE stations if they think the union "represents" their BEST interests....Bottom line...The IAM's only goal is to make sure it survivies as long as it can (as opposed to being the collective VOICE of it's membership).....and if the company keeps whittling away pieces of it till there's noting left, so be it.....the IAM will do WHATEVER the company tells it to do....and when the merger comes thru, the IAM will take WHATEVER bone the new company throws them..that is...** IF ** the new company decides to let the IAM stick around....

The IAM let NWA know what kind of backbone it had when it let the company got rid of thousands of it's dues paying members without a whimper...The IAM lost whatever credibility it had when it buckled during bankruptcy. The message it needed to send then was we ALL make it..or we ALL go down...instead of telling the company that it could peacemeal it away until a merger...when that new company would then get rid of it.....

The BEST thing the IAM could have done was to stand STRONG with AMFA (REGARDLESS of how it felt) when IT went out...But now you're talking about "fragile union ego's" at play......The IAM always had it's nose bent because the mechanics left the IAM for AMFA...and what the "fragile-ego'd" IAM management never understood was that the battle was with NWA......N-O-T Amfa...Unions need to stick TOGETHER and battle against the evil empire (NWA)...instead...the IAM decided to let the company win using basic Business 101...DEVIDE and CONQUOER...so instead of the two unions presenting a united union front to the company, The IAM rolled over and let the company have it's way with the AMFA...and what goes around comes around.....because since there was no support from the hanger, the company knew it could dictate terms to the IAM from there on out...

I mean...what did the IAM think...the PILOTS were gonna stand up for them ??? hahahahahahahaha.....When the IAM decided to cross a ** UNION ** picket line, it then sent a message to the company......we CAN be HAD !!! ....

So I guess the answer to your question would be....You don't have to worry about the union vs non-union thing...cause the new "merged" company gets whatever it wants......cause the ONLY thing a company fears is a STRONG/UNITED union...and there AREN'T any of those anymore....

 

[signals]

us453666,
Great Info and points!!!

I do work at one of those 'outsourced' nwa hubs...don't work for the airlines, though. What you speak of is true, but the thing is that other airlines seem to be following suit with this outsourcing BS.

Northwest has been outsourced to Air Wisconsin and from what I know they are non-union. They get fired easily from any minor infraction and most faces change rapidly. The funny part is that Air Wisconsin also outsources to United at this hub. I had to double-takes when I see Northwest employees working also at United! This is the obvious one!

All other airlines use something called Landmark Aviation(?) for their ground crews, except for one or two airlines that have their own crews.

The real sadness of the situation is when you hear discussions between the scabs and others like the TSAs, who feel the former airline employees were way overpaid. This from TSA that took jobs from a few minimum wage employees and now cost the airlines more than they are worth.

 

[Kev3188]

I do work at one of those 'outsourced' nwa hubs...

None of NWA's "hubs" are outsourced.

Northwest has been outsourced to Air Wisconsin and from what I know they are non-union.

Actually, ZW is not only union, but they're in the same District Lodge (143) as NWA.

 

[signals]

None of NWA's "hubs" are outsourced.






Actually, ZW is not only union, but they're in the same District Lodge (143) as NWA.

Didn't mean hub, meant station.

If they ARE union, then what's up with the 'scab' notes left by former employees?

It gets confusing because if they are union, why the low wage, and what is the real problem other than replacing past employees with wage cuts?

I'm missing something! And everything I heard and read(including a letter to the editor by the husband of a former nwa employee) makes no sense. Some claim the former employees had bumping rights to major hubs and some chose not to take them. I can't confirm or deny this last fact.

Bottom line...if the current outsourced employees are union, why are they called scabs by others??? That's just not right.

 

[Kev3188]

If they ARE union, then what's up with the 'scab' notes left by former employees?

You don't have to take my word for it. Swing on over to www.iam143.org, and see for yourself.

It gets confusing because if they are union, why the low wage, and what is the real problem other than replacing past employees with wage cuts?

Actually, with their newly ratified contract, they top out at more than NWA... It takes a looonnnnngggg time to do it, but still.

I'm missing something! And everything I heard and read(including a letter to the editor by the husband of a former nwa employee) makes no sense. Some claim the former employees had bumping rights to major hubs and some chose not to take them. I can't confirm or deny this last fact.

Every NWA employee had the option to exercise their seniority to wherever they could hold.

Bottom line...if the current outsourced employees are union, why are they called scabs by others??? That's just not right.

Just because they're union doesn't make what the leaders of DL 143 did right.

 

[NewHampshire Black Bears]

Signals,(FYI)

Kev3188, is correct !(He does that a lot---BTW)

Here in MHT(Manchester NH.) which got outsourced, along with a Zillion other stations :down: , MHT/NW brought in an outfit named Swissport.

Well..lo and behold(after a brief conversation with one dude,) I find out, that they belong to my OLD POS union....the TWU

In the TRUE sense of a SCAB, these dim-wits "DIDN'T Qualify" !!

 

[Tigerbythetail]

Every NWA employee had the option to exercise their seniority to wherever they could hold.

But not every NWA employee had to make that choice, to exercise seniority to another city. This contract was passed largely by hub employees and force fed to the rest.

 

[Tigerbythetail]

None of NWA's "hubs" are outsourced.






Actually, ZW is not only union, but they're in the same District Lodge (143) as NWA.

Pretty sure that if you actually talk to anybody that was ZW in the early 90's, when they went from a strong regional to 4 cities, that they were pretty much lambs to slaughter, because the IAM was more concerned with UA/NWA contracts at the time. The ZW/IAM story is nothing more than more proof that the IAM is more concerned with itself than it's membership.

 

[Kev3188]

But not every NWA employee had to make that choice, to exercise seniority to another city. This contract was passed largely by hub employees and force fed to the rest.

That's usually how it goes, isn't it?

How the hub(s) vote predicates the result. No revelation there....

 

[Tigerbythetail]

That's usually how it goes, isn't it?

How the hub(s) vote predicates the result. No revelation there...

No... no revelation to you or I. To somebody who thinks if they vote in a union, equitable treatment to all will follow.....?