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George Nicolau, arbitrator is hated by the US Airways East pilots an arbitrator of their choice rejected his decision, booted ALPA and formed a union to get around arbitration they agreed to participate. I was reading various articles and noted that he has made decisions concerning American, TWA, Reno and Eagle. We all know how the pilots of the former US Air feel about this arbitrator, how do the employees of American feel about him?
I think this is relevant considering our history with this arbitrator and a possible merger on the horizon.
Related Articles:
[background=#ffffff]Arbitrator stands by controversial list
1 commentby Dawn Gilbertson - Apr. 26, 2009 12:00 AM
The Arizona Republic
His name is a household name, often used in vain, in the pilot ranks at US Airways.
George Nicolau, an 84-year-old New York attorney best known for his longtime role as Major League Baseball's arbitrator, is the federal arbitrator who two years ago issued the merged seniority list that bitterly divided the 5,000 pilots of the former America West Airlines and the old US Airways.T[/background][background=#ffffff]he list is the unofficial centerpiece of a trial that begins in federal court in Phoenix Tuesday, pitting the two pilot groups against each other four years after the merger was announced.
Nicolau won't be there and says he doesn't even know what the lawsuit is about.But he says he does know this: The list was fair.
In the decision, he rejected US Airways pilots' requests for a seniority system based on date of hire, which would have strongly favored them given America West's younger age. He also weighed the career expectations of both sides and concluded that the financial future of US Airways was "not comparable to or as bright as that of America West" at the time of the merger.
He came up with a blended seniority list that put several hundred of US Airways' most senior pilots, those flying the prized international flights, at the top and ranked the rest according to a ratio based on their status at the time of the merger. US Airways pilots on furlough at the time of the merger were put at the bottom, a major sore point. One of two pilots from outside America West/US Airways on the panel issued a dissenting opinion on that point but otherwise praised Nicolau's rationale.
"I still believe it's the right one," Nicolau said of the list.
He was the only voting member of a three-member Air Line Pilots Association arbitration board that heard the case in late 2006.
Nicolau said there were plenty of "fusses" about some of his Major League Baseball decisions, but none lingered as long as the US Airways decision.[/background]
AMR, Allied Pilots Agree to Recess in Talks
California | BRIEFLY / AIRLINES
March 24, 1999|Bloomberg News
AMR Corp., parent of American Airlines, and its pilots agreed to a temporary recess in their federally mediated talks on ways to integrate low-fare carrier Reno Air Inc., which the company bought last year. The talks will resume in early April in order to accommodate the schedule of mediator George Nicolau. The parties met for a third day Tuesday. AMR and the Allied Pilots Assn. are under a news blackout and didn't discuss details, though their joint statement said "progress was made" in the first few days. Leaders of AMR's pilots union have said they fear the airline will shift their jobs to the pilots of Reno Air, which AMR bought for $124 million in December. American pilots last month staged an 11-day protest over pay, training and other issues related to the purchase, forcing cancellation of 6,600 flights before a federal judge intervened. The Reno Air pilots union isn't participating in the mediated talks, a union spokesman said. Although the Reno Air union has been trying to meet with the AMR pilots union, it's made little progress, the spokesman said. Reno's 300 pilots oppose losing seniority to their counterparts at American, which would result in them being assigned less favorable flight schedules. Reno's pilots earn an average salary of $65,000, compared with American pilots' average salary of $150,000. Separately, Reno Air said it will begin new service between Orange County's John Wayne International Airport and San Francisco International Airport effective May 1.
American, pilots union resolve TWA dispute
Dallas Business Journal
Date: Tuesday, April 10, 2001, 1:17pm CDT
FORT WORTH -- American Airlines resolved its long-standing differences with the pilots' union over the acquisition of Trans World Airlines late Monday, shortly after a federal appeals court cleared the way for American to close its historic deal with TWA.
Depending on whether United Airlines wins approval to merge with U.S. Airways, American's TWA purchase for $724 million in cash and the assumption of $3.5 billion in debt could make the Fort Worth-based carrier the largest airline in the world.
American and the Allied Pilots Association emerged from six weeks of negotiations with private mediator George Nicolau Monday and outlined a phased-in program to handle American's transition as the new owner of St. Louis-based TWA.
American said it promised steady growth in the number of captains' slots for its flight crews, a "hard fence" around TWA L.L.C. that will keep operations separate from American during the transition, restoration of length-of-serve credits for American's pilots who were previously furloughed, and a transitional program for integrating TWA pilots into American's work rules and payroll system.
Arbitrator tells American Airlines to hire 35 American Eagle captains
5:09 pm on April 9, 2010| Permalink
Arbitrator George Nicolau ordered American Airlines on Friday to let 35 American Eagle CJ captains transfer to American and begin training by June.
UPDATE: KEEP READING DOWN AT THE BOTTOM FOR THE AMERICAN EAGLE MORE-LEARNED EXPLANATION OF THE NICOLAU DECISION.
In all, 286 senior Eagle CJ captains will be given the chance to transfer to American.
Nicolau’s opinion and award wraps up a long dispute involving American, American Eagle, the Allied Pilots Association, which represents American’s pilots, and the Air Line Pilots Association, which represents Eagle pilots.
The dispute stems from a 1997 agreement that allowed some American Eagle pilots the option to transfer to American as opportunities arose.
After Sept. 11, American was forced to furlough nearly 3,000 pilots, including many that had come to American from Trans World Airlines.
ALPA said that when American recalled some furloughed ex-TWA pilots beginning in June 2007 and through March 2009, the slots should have gone to American Eagle pilots per the 1997 agreement.
A previous arbitrator had agreed with ALPA, but that decision didn’t determine how the problem would be remedied.
With one group of American pilots furloughed in late February and others possible, Nicolau’s decision made this provision:
I think this is relevant considering our history with this arbitrator and a possible merger on the horizon.
Related Articles:
[background=#ffffff]Arbitrator stands by controversial list
1 commentby Dawn Gilbertson - Apr. 26, 2009 12:00 AM
The Arizona Republic
His name is a household name, often used in vain, in the pilot ranks at US Airways.
George Nicolau, an 84-year-old New York attorney best known for his longtime role as Major League Baseball's arbitrator, is the federal arbitrator who two years ago issued the merged seniority list that bitterly divided the 5,000 pilots of the former America West Airlines and the old US Airways.T[/background][background=#ffffff]he list is the unofficial centerpiece of a trial that begins in federal court in Phoenix Tuesday, pitting the two pilot groups against each other four years after the merger was announced.
Nicolau won't be there and says he doesn't even know what the lawsuit is about.But he says he does know this: The list was fair.
In the decision, he rejected US Airways pilots' requests for a seniority system based on date of hire, which would have strongly favored them given America West's younger age. He also weighed the career expectations of both sides and concluded that the financial future of US Airways was "not comparable to or as bright as that of America West" at the time of the merger.
He came up with a blended seniority list that put several hundred of US Airways' most senior pilots, those flying the prized international flights, at the top and ranked the rest according to a ratio based on their status at the time of the merger. US Airways pilots on furlough at the time of the merger were put at the bottom, a major sore point. One of two pilots from outside America West/US Airways on the panel issued a dissenting opinion on that point but otherwise praised Nicolau's rationale.
"I still believe it's the right one," Nicolau said of the list.
He was the only voting member of a three-member Air Line Pilots Association arbitration board that heard the case in late 2006.
Nicolau said there were plenty of "fusses" about some of his Major League Baseball decisions, but none lingered as long as the US Airways decision.[/background]
AMR, Allied Pilots Agree to Recess in Talks
California | BRIEFLY / AIRLINES
March 24, 1999|Bloomberg News
AMR Corp., parent of American Airlines, and its pilots agreed to a temporary recess in their federally mediated talks on ways to integrate low-fare carrier Reno Air Inc., which the company bought last year. The talks will resume in early April in order to accommodate the schedule of mediator George Nicolau. The parties met for a third day Tuesday. AMR and the Allied Pilots Assn. are under a news blackout and didn't discuss details, though their joint statement said "progress was made" in the first few days. Leaders of AMR's pilots union have said they fear the airline will shift their jobs to the pilots of Reno Air, which AMR bought for $124 million in December. American pilots last month staged an 11-day protest over pay, training and other issues related to the purchase, forcing cancellation of 6,600 flights before a federal judge intervened. The Reno Air pilots union isn't participating in the mediated talks, a union spokesman said. Although the Reno Air union has been trying to meet with the AMR pilots union, it's made little progress, the spokesman said. Reno's 300 pilots oppose losing seniority to their counterparts at American, which would result in them being assigned less favorable flight schedules. Reno's pilots earn an average salary of $65,000, compared with American pilots' average salary of $150,000. Separately, Reno Air said it will begin new service between Orange County's John Wayne International Airport and San Francisco International Airport effective May 1.
American, pilots union resolve TWA dispute
Dallas Business Journal
Date: Tuesday, April 10, 2001, 1:17pm CDT
FORT WORTH -- American Airlines resolved its long-standing differences with the pilots' union over the acquisition of Trans World Airlines late Monday, shortly after a federal appeals court cleared the way for American to close its historic deal with TWA.
Depending on whether United Airlines wins approval to merge with U.S. Airways, American's TWA purchase for $724 million in cash and the assumption of $3.5 billion in debt could make the Fort Worth-based carrier the largest airline in the world.
American and the Allied Pilots Association emerged from six weeks of negotiations with private mediator George Nicolau Monday and outlined a phased-in program to handle American's transition as the new owner of St. Louis-based TWA.
American said it promised steady growth in the number of captains' slots for its flight crews, a "hard fence" around TWA L.L.C. that will keep operations separate from American during the transition, restoration of length-of-serve credits for American's pilots who were previously furloughed, and a transitional program for integrating TWA pilots into American's work rules and payroll system.
Arbitrator tells American Airlines to hire 35 American Eagle captains
5:09 pm on April 9, 2010| Permalink
Arbitrator George Nicolau ordered American Airlines on Friday to let 35 American Eagle CJ captains transfer to American and begin training by June.
UPDATE: KEEP READING DOWN AT THE BOTTOM FOR THE AMERICAN EAGLE MORE-LEARNED EXPLANATION OF THE NICOLAU DECISION.
In all, 286 senior Eagle CJ captains will be given the chance to transfer to American.
Nicolau’s opinion and award wraps up a long dispute involving American, American Eagle, the Allied Pilots Association, which represents American’s pilots, and the Air Line Pilots Association, which represents Eagle pilots.
The dispute stems from a 1997 agreement that allowed some American Eagle pilots the option to transfer to American as opportunities arose.
After Sept. 11, American was forced to furlough nearly 3,000 pilots, including many that had come to American from Trans World Airlines.
ALPA said that when American recalled some furloughed ex-TWA pilots beginning in June 2007 and through March 2009, the slots should have gone to American Eagle pilots per the 1997 agreement.
A previous arbitrator had agreed with ALPA, but that decision didn’t determine how the problem would be remedied.
With one group of American pilots furloughed in late February and others possible, Nicolau’s decision made this provision:
“There shall be no furloughs as a result of these
transfers. If, for other reasons, a furlough is
deemed necessary during 2010, 35 pilots
furloughed shall receive two additional months
furlough pay in the amounts set forth in the
AA/APA Agreement.”
transfers. If, for other reasons, a furlough is
deemed necessary during 2010, 35 pilots
furloughed shall receive two additional months
furlough pay in the amounts set forth in the
AA/APA Agreement.”
