TWU

[FWAAA]

<_< ------- Sounds to me more a Company problem than a Union one! Why always put it on the backs of Union members? The reality of it is: Is the Company willing to pay a living wage to keep it's Aircraft flying? Simple as that? :huh:

The answer is in the last paragraph of mine that you quoted, MCI. While the OH guys probably won't go for a tiny raise for themselves coupled with big raises for the line, they probably can be convinced to accept a paltry raise for everybody (given your crappy union representation). So everybody gets a dollar or two, the OH gets done and the line guys continue to get OT to get the work finished.

And as I posted previously, perhaps that OT is a small price to pay compared to giving you and everyone else a huge raise just to get the line guys up to a living wage. OT for a few is maybe, just maybe, cheaper than $80k base pay for everyone in TUL, MCI and AFW. It's not the Company's problem that Owens has to work OT plus three other part-time jobs to make ends meet - it's his problem.

Not only that, but maybe the Company figures that the line OT wouldn't really go away even if they did make $80k. Owens is confident it would, but maybe he's being a little optimistic.

 

[Bob Owens]

The answer is in the last paragraph of mine that you quoted, MCI. While the OH guys probably won't go for a tiny raise for themselves coupled with big raises for the line, they probably can be convinced to accept a paltry raise for everybody (given your crappy union representation). So everybody gets a dollar or two, the OH gets done and the line guys continue to get OT to get the work finished.

If OH would go for a 25% paycut what makes you think they wouldnt go for a smaller raise than the line guys?

If the company threw the offer on the table its at the sole discretion of the International whether or not it goes to a vote to the membership. THAT IS FACT. Sure it may be rejected by the Tulsa negotiating committee members but they are not party to the agreement and they cant stop it from going to a vote. The negotiating committe has no real say in the contract, never did, it was always just a show. Get the committee to endorse crappy deals, then when the members are dissatisfied the International blames the committee. The committee members get voted out and they have a whole new set of greenhorns and they repeat the cycle over and over again.

The fact is that most union workers that are covered under nationwide contracts (government workers for example) dont get paid the same no matter where they work, regional cost differences are taken into account. The airlines are an anomaly, it goes back to when the airlines were well paid jobs, Tulsa workers werent paid what comparably skilled workers were paid, they were paid a New York wage, much much more than their peers.

While some would undoubtably protest most realize that its inevitable that the pay scales must diverge. Tulsa workers are competing with FBOs in Mississippi, Alabama or Guatamala and Singapore, not UAL, NWA or Delta anymore. They no longer have the advantage as far as being able to live well on a lower wage.

Line workers can only subsidize OH so much before it gets to the point where there isnt anyone out there making money for the airline. New York is already losing workers faster than they can replace them. Those who remain are not inclined to overly exert themselves anymore, they certainly arent going to work harder to make up for attrition-thats what the OT is for. While FBO wages are still a good wage for Tulsa there is no way mechanics on the coasts can survive on an FBO wage, thats why there arent major FBOs on the coasts.

If OH insists that the line guys live on FBO wages that leaves the line guys with two options, kill every plane they see by writing the crap out of them so they can work OT (like they used to do at Peoples Express) or quit and leave the industry. Most would opt for the first choice, make it in OT for as long as it lasts, then when the carrier goes out of business, collect unemployment till they find another job. Most of us have been down that road before. We know somebody else will expand and fill in the gaps and they will need mechanics.

And as I posted previously, perhaps that OT is a small price to pay compared to giving you and everyone else a huge raise just to get the line guys up to a living wage. OT for a few is maybe, just maybe, cheaper than $80k base pay for everyone in TUL, MCI and AFW. It's not the Company's problem that Owens has to work OT plus three other part-time jobs to make ends meet - it's his problem.

Paying the OT is nothing, the cost is in delays and cancellations. The cost of one plane out of service for one day would more than cover my wage for the year, including OT. The issue of cost isnt in OT, its in lost revenue. So as you can see, by not having us go the extra mile because we cant make ends meet, it becomes their problem.

Not only that, but maybe the Company figures that the line OT wouldn't really go away even if they did make $80k. Owens is confident it would, but maybe he's being a little optimistic.

Well that has been what has happened in the past. A "can do" attitude makes a big difference, just look at SWA, but it costs, AA wants to play, but not pay.