US Airways (East) ALPA Merger Committee Update

USA320Pilot

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US Airways (East) ALPA Merger Committee Update - January 28, 2007

On Friday, January 26 the US Airways and America West Merger Committees finished the rebuttal phase of the seniority integration arbitration hearing in Washington D.C. Your merger committee is very satisfied that we have effectively presented the key arguments and evidence to the Arbitration Panel. There were approximately ten volumes of testimony and evidence that we entered as part of our case-in-chief, rebuttal case and surrebuttal. Arbitrator Nicolau and the two pilot neutrals have asked for some additional assistance in honing the information before them into a more workable format. They have scheduled what he described as a working session for Wednesday, February 21 in Washington, D.C.

Mr. Nicolau said the Arbitration Board has trouble with both sides’ proposals. He has asked both committees to submit their final positions at the February 21 session. The Board refused to hear evidence offered by the AWA side on the pending US Airways-Delta merger, on the possibility of airline pilots flying past age 60 and on how those contingencies might affect the US-AWA seniority integration.

The Arbitration Panel has given both merger committees work assignments in preparation for the February 21 meeting.

We are to provide the Panel with actual fleet numbers for both sides for July 2006 and Jan 2007 and the Company’s projected fleet for July 2007.

Each side is to provide a seniority list for July 1, 2007, with all retired and deceased pilots removed. The Panel has asked that the list contain each pilot’s employee number, name, date of hire and birth date only.

Written briefs will be submitted to the Panel 30 days after the February 21 meeting, which works out to March 23. The Board indicated that we could expect a combined seniority list no later than June. Your Merger Committee will be working closely with our computer analysts, merger counsel and MEC in preparation for the final phases of the case. Thank you for your continued support. Please feel free to contact us with any questions.
 
I do not get it. Mediation, followed by Arbitration.....followed by Mediation for one day??????, yet again? Something is rotten in Denmark. What is the Arbitrator getting paid for...? Greeter.
 
This will be the result:

- 1986 and senior is straight DOH.
- East F/Os get slotted in with with AWA DOHs of 1987-1998
- DOH adjusted for length of service for the rest of the list.
- CELs are at the bottom.

Then, at last, we can get on with the more important things in life - like a joint contract.
 
Don't think so. This thing is very up in the air. It would not surprise me to see it slotted from top to bottom.

USA320 will lose a bunch of seniority.

pilot
 
The Panel has asked that the list contain each pilot’s employee number, name, date of hire and birth date only.

No furlough dates, length of service, time of service, etc. Seems like the panel is primarily looking at date-of-hire, with some consideration of the retirements that are coming up.

Can't imagine why Mr. Nicolau didn't think that the AWA proposed list was reasonable. After all, why shouldn't a 2005 hire at AWA have 2000+ AAA guys below him? :lol:

If it wasn't for AAA, AWA would now be flying A380s, 747s, hell, maybe even that thing that won the X-prize! AAA spoiled it all. Staple 'em.

America West. DHC8 pilots saving the industry one airline at a time, Delta next. :up:
 
No furlough dates, length of service, time of service, etc. Seems like the panel is primarily looking at date-of-hire, with some consideration of the retirements that are coming up.

Can't imagine why Mr. Nicolau didn't think that the AWA proposed list was reasonable. After all, why shouldn't a 2005 hire at AWA have 2000+ AAA guys below him? :lol:

If it wasn't for AAA, AWA would now be flying A380s, 747s, hell, maybe even that thing that won the X-prize! AAA spoiled it all. Staple 'em.

America West. DHC8 pilots saving the industry one airline at a time, Delta next. :up:

They probably weren't too interested in having pilots' phone numbers (the AWA list has phone numbers). Mr. Nicolau can get mine from the phone book anyway. I seriously doubt, however, they will merge the entire list using only one method. A simiple result after millions of dollars were spent on a legal process is just not a natural result in the legal community.
 
No furlough dates, length of service, time of service, etc. Seems like the panel is primarily looking at date-of-hire, with some consideration of the retirements that are coming up.

Can't imagine why Mr. Nicolau didn't think that the AWA proposed list was reasonable. After all, why shouldn't a 2005 hire at AWA have 2000+ AAA guys below him? :lol:

If it wasn't for AAA, AWA would now be flying A380s, 747s, hell, maybe even that thing that won the X-prize! AAA spoiled it all. Staple 'em.

America West. DHC8 pilots saving the industry one airline at a time, Delta next. :up:

That may be, but he had a problem with the east proposal as well. I think the list we will end up seeing will be pretty close to what aquagreen737 posted.
 
If it wasn't for AAA, AWA would now be flying A380s, 747s, hell, maybe even that thing that won the X-prize! AAA spoiled it all. Staple 'em.

America West. DHC8 pilots saving the industry one airline at a time, Delta next. :up:
I love this! :lol:
Heck, if it weren't for AWA, AAA pilots would NOT be flying ANYTHING right about now! ;)

(Yes, AWA may have been headed towards bankruptcy, too, but they would have emerged, intact. It's hard to ignore the fact that AAA was to be liquidated and AWA "saved" AAA's pilots their jobs.)

So much for the "brotherhood"...
 
That may be, but he had a problem with the east proposal as well. I think the list we will end up seeing will be pretty close to what aquagreen737 posted.

I think one of the things they wanted changed with the AAA list was to have the retired, and deceased pilots removed from the list.
 
They probably weren't too interested in having pilots' phone numbers (the AWA list has phone numbers). Mr. Nicolau can get mine from the phone book anyway. I seriously doubt, however, they will merge the entire list using only one method. A simiple result after millions of dollars were spent on a legal process is just not a natural result in the legal community.

Maybe the east should have included phone numbers, that way Nicolau could give the dead guys a call. :shock:
 
This will be the result:

- CELs are at the bottom.
Not sure exactly what you meant by this... If it is the current CEL list, of those still flying at PDT or PSA, I doubt that it will be attached to the combinded post merger US Airways senority list, as that idea appears to be dead in the water.

If you are talking about the 2004 Newhires that came over from ALG + PDT, to fly right seat in AAA's E-170's, that is yet to be determined.

Granted, that entire situation added some complexity to this arbitration, but it only made the AWA pilots look real stupid arguing that the "Midatlantic" operation was only commuter flying, and should not be counted (nor pilots recalled)...

When the AWA pilots expected full credit (for service) for their pilots who had started with AWA, flying the DHC-8 turboprop...

Basically, all of this is up to the arbitrator, but to assume that the 2004 AAA newhires will automatically be placed behind the most junior AWA pilot is not a sure bet.
 
There is no way for anyone to forcast how this thing will turn out. Any decision is better than the arguing that is going on now. I've never seen a seniority arbitration that was anything but a surprise.

A320 Driver
 

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