Well according to Seeham after abrogation the company can choose to only throw out the parts it wants to throw out & keep the parts it wants to keep so more than likely it would keep the Union dues part for the TWU this BK stuff is very complicated even for the Lawyers & things are changing all the time so the truth is nobody really know's what will happen, all we can do is guess & make the best decision we can, there are always risks to fighting but some things are worth fighting for of course.
The question there is did they inform the court of that? You have to remember that every move they make has to be cleared by the Judge.They told the court that these were the terms they wanted to put in place, the Judge made his decision to abrogate based in part on that, if they impose something different than what the Judge based his decision on how would the court react to that? Well if the whole place went to crap, sick outs, slow downs etc I suspect the BK Judge would get fired up at the company while the other courts go after the Unions with TROs etc. I think the BK Judge would cite that they told him that they were planning on imposing abc, and if he had known that they in fact were planning on imposing xyz he would have ruled against the motion because of what was now occurring on the ramp. IMO in short order he would demand that the company stay within the parameters of what they presented to the court and the TROs would be used to try and restore peace.
If the company could simply do as they please upon abrogation then why not just a petition to abrogate? Why bother to even have them submit a term sheet?
Then again if they imposed different terms and things went smoothly that would simply be the new rule for airlines, just as the NWA decision where Airline workers, and airline workers alone can not strike upon abrogation (despite the fact that in 1983 they did) because for airlines its now an annulment, has become accepted, at least until someone brings it to the Supreme Court. What happens in the courtroom depends on how they think reaction will be outside the courtroom. The best thing that could happen for all airline workers is for the Pilots, Mechanics and Flight Attendants to all reject the concessions. Then if the Judge abrogates , which I do not think he would do if all three groups stood together against the concessions, file for a restraining order stopping the company from imposing the new terms until we settle the issue as far as our right to strike and say that if the order is not granted all three groups will stike anyway. We need to secure the same rights as every other creditor , as every other worker, in C-11. If not then roll us into 1167 like Railroad workers.
Allowing the NWA decision to stand, where Airline workers, and only Airline workers workers can be put in the position of being held to the restrictions of the RLA while at the same time being stripped of the protections of the RLA is a fight worth fighting because as it stands there really is no reason to be in a Union in the Airline industry if all an airline needs to do is file C-11 and impose whatever they want and we have no legal recourse as far as protecting our interests. AA has over $5 billion in the bank, and fuel prices have declined, they stand to make huge profits and dont need a penny from us to be profitable, maybe they wont make $3 billion but nobody in this industry makes $3billion.
Like I said if the Judge can just impose new permanent deals on workers whats stopping them from setting terms for any other creditor? $1/gallon fuel, $1/month rents etc etc? Some say the workers can quit if they dont like it, well the contract is not an individual contract, its a CBA so it must be looked at like other creditors agreements. Just as workers can quit if they dont like the CBA shareholders could sell their shares if they dont like the terms imposed on the corporation. Clearly its easier for a shareholder to get out of a company where he does not like the deal imposed on it than it is for a worker to quit his job because he does not like the deal imposed through the CBA. The fact that individual workers can quit, as long as they dont do it all at once under the leadership and guadance of the Union, does not justify making CBAs inferior contracts under the law. If the members choose to reject then they should have the same right to withdraw their labor collectively as corporations, acting in the collective interests of its shareholders can decide to terminate providing goods and services if they do not agree to the terms. A Judge should have no right to determine against the workers right to say that they collectively reject the companies offer just as he has no right to force Exxon, or the Airport Authority and its shareholders to accept a price that they do not agree to. The arguement that a bad job is better than no job would be no different than saying $1/month rent is better than zero $ per month rent. Its not the courts right to determine whats better for the owner, whether its a shareholder or a Union Member, based upon the desires or greed or even needs of a debtor.