Checking it Out said:
Here is the topic of this thread. I ask after reading the posts how many are actually addressing the Question? Do these Amfa wantabes actually know what their fighting for? It looks to me like it is the blind leading the blind.
What has amfa done in the last 90 days to bring members back to work or settle contracts?
This was the Question, Is it Pro Amfa rhetoric on this thread or Anti TWU? Looks to me you could dangle a carrot in front of these amfa wantabes and they would follow anyone!
It is a shame they are willing to destroy our livelyhoods and don't have a clue what their fighting for!!!! God Help us all if they were ever to get In!!!!!
You of all people have some nerve complaining about others not answering your question.
Maybe we should ask the Flight Attendants at SWA what the TWU has done for them lately?
The fact is that our careers will hopefully last longer than 90days. When we are considering which union we should choose to represent us we should look at long term performance and the structure of the union to see if it shares our objectives.
The goal of AMFA is to get all mechanics into one union. AMFA believes in promoting the class and craft.
The goal of the TWU is to get as many dues payers as possible, regardless of whether or not they have the capability to focus on members needs or not. The TWU believes that one size fits all.
AMFA has never agreed to concessions. For most of its history its members have enjoyed top pay and benifits compared to the industry despite the fact that they usually represented smaller carriers. Smaller carriers historically paid lower than the major carriers.
The TWU has given concessions on EVERY contract at AA since 1983. These concessions have eroded the quality of members lives despite booms in the economy.
AMFA is a democratic union where the members can elect who they want to any position in the union. AMFA members can recall any officer.
In the TWU members can not recall any officer. Members do not get to vote on top union officials who can remove any local officer at will. In the TWU/ATD/AA all contact between the top levels of the company and the union are conducted by appointed TWU officials, some of whom were unelectable. All negotiations are conducted between appointed officials and the company. THe members have no way to remove these unaccountable officials other than removing the whole union.
AMFA seeks to promote the class and craft.
The TWU seeks to destroy the class and craft in order to assimilate mechanics with other workers. The TWU has led the movement to destroy our class and craft by transferring our work to other lower paying clasifications, and creating lower paying subclasses to our title group.
AMFA is against FAR66.
The TWU has no official position on the proposed regulation despite the fact that it could have a severe impact upon our profession.
AMFA is against Foreign Repair Stations. However AMFAs ability to fight against this was limited because up until 1999 AMFA did not have enough income since all dues were voluntary contributions from associate members. Members voluntarily contributed to AMFA.
The TWU has taken our COMPULSORY dues from us for years. FAR 145 was changed to allow more foreign repair during BUSH the 1st yet for all these years the TWU did nothing. It is only now that AMFA is sweeping through the Industry that the TWU and the AFL-CIO have decided to fight this FAR. The fact of the matter is that most of the jobs that are lost by US carriers are not going overseas, they are going to domestic facilities.
The question is do we continue to pay dues to the TWU, so they can use them for cars, pension funds for themselves and other perks, in other words anything but our issues? Or do we seek to join up with the MAJORITY of other mechanics and join AMFA? Should we seek to strengthen a democratic mechanics union, that is focused on our profession in our industry or do we stay with a corrupt catch all union that is only concerned about dues?
You see CIO, there is more to the issue than the last 90 days. Whether you like it or not this is not the Kremlin on Pine and you are not in control of the debate here. Ideas and issues can be exchanged freely here.
The fact is you dont like the answers that you are getting. For over 20 years the TWU has been destroying the reasonable expectations of every class of airline worker they represent. Working in the airline industry used to be a great job, but the TWU in their quest to get more members by giving the carriers where they represent workers the advantage of lower labor costs has destoyed the industry. From Fuelers to baggage handlers, mechanics to flight attendants the TWU has successfully lowered wages while swelling the ranks of dues payers. The ATD has grown to become the largest part of the TWU. For the TWU our loss has been their gain. At AA alone, this policy has swelled the membership from around 10,000 members to 36,000. The TWU calls this a success. They claim to have created more jobs when in fact they have helped to destroy thousands of high paying jobs and several other airlines. The TWU is to the airline Industry what Mexico is to the manufacturing Industry.
No other organization, not the ATA, not AIRCON, not Cesta, poses more of a threat to the living standards of workers in this industry than Sonny Hall and Jim Littles TWU/ATD.
