US Pilots Labor Discussion
- Thread starter Richard
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"ATTENTION ....ATTENTION !!! Would 700uw please report to gate 5 and bring one of those long rubber gloves so he can pull his head out of his ....
sumadarson
Veteran
- Nov 17, 2010
- 851
- 905
My original post before a lav truck driver tried to drive away with it. I only posted a quote, lav man is on a pilot forum with a retired piedmont pilot who was part of a group that stapled Empire pilots to the bottom of his list and ual pilot without a new contract since 2007 giving their advice. Hypocrites with large watches.
"""united airline pilots have been without a contract since 2007. ual pilots latest update February 25, 2011.
"" Message From the Master Chairman
Many pilots have understandably expressed concerns and questions about the progress of contract negotiations. Obviously none of us are pleased with where we are to date. We wanted this negotiation complete in the weeks following the merger announcement.
When the MEC approved the Transition and Process agreement, all parties to the agreement were planning on achieving a new Joint Collective Bargaining Agreement (JCBA) by October 2010. At the time this seemed a difficult but not impossible target date, but only if there were absolutely no hitches in the negotiations process, which, as we know, did not come to pass.
The current hurdle, however, remains the gulf between the terms of the company’s and ALPA’s comprehensive proposals, made on October 28 and December 15, respectively. Quite simply, the two offers are far apart with numerous open items. None of the parties fully appreciated the extent of the differences in the two airlines and the amount of challenging, painstaking work required to marry such dissimilar corporate cultures and contracts, but, again this is where we find ourselves today.
So, where do we go from here? We understand the urgency of fixing our substandard contracts. We also recognize that days turn into weeks and weeks turn into months, and that this has to stop to get the contract we deserve in the near term. Therefore, last month we orchestrated a series of meetings with all the parties including one which CAL-MEC Chairman Jay Pierce and I met with UAL CEO Jeff Smisek . We reiterated our desire to move negotiations forward as expeditiously as possible. Getting to an agreement requires meeting and we couldn’t allow this time to pass with no interaction while waiting for the NMB process to begin. As a result of that meeting, and to continue to move the process, both ALPA and the company negotiating teams continued to meet at the table, even prior to the first meeting with the National Mediation Board in Washington last Friday, February 18.
National Mediation Board member Linda Puchala, Senior Mediator Patricia Sims, and Mediator Gerry McGuckin were very direct during our two-hour meeting. Ms. Puchala said that they are dedicating mediator time at taxpayer expense and that they expect the parties to make good use of the federal mediator’s time by negotiating toward an agreement. She said when it is apparent that the parties are in a position to move expeditiously and are making progress at the negotiating table, the Board’s role is to make the mediator available at increasing intervals. Mr. McGuckin will be coming to observe negotiations next week. His schedule thereafter and the degree of the NMB’s involvement in our weekly negotiating schedule could vary from one to two weeks a month to every week, and will depend on his assessment of the rate of progress in negotiations. The NMB exists for the purpose of bringing parties to agreement and times the full placement of its limited resources to bring contracts to conclusion. Complete allocation of mediator time will occur at the point of negotiations when bargaining has reached its mature stage.
It is the view of the MEC and its advisors that a window of opportunity for an expedited industry-leading contract opened with the announcement of the merger last May, but there is always a risk that this window of opportunity could shrink for many reasons. We all read the news and recognize that external factors that are beyond our control, such as the price of oil as an emotional and speculative result of the revolts in the Middle East, are not helpful. The time is now to get an agreement for all kinds of reasons, including that we do not control the window and clearly because we have lived under this agreement for far too long and it is well past due.
UAL management continues to reiterate that they share our desire to achieve a JCBA, and they appreciate that they cannot effectively compete in the world marketplace with a bifurcated pilot group. Wall Street also understands that United’s business traffic customers are far more demanding than U.S. Airways’ cost-conscious clientele. Markets will reward our more direct competitors, such as Delta, that avoided protracted contract negotiations. Such employee buy-in directly enhances customer service and the bottom line.
At the moment, with $8.7 billion in cash, albeit not absent debt, the company can and must manage and pay for merger-related expenses, including a JCBA. Thus, the task at hand is to quickly resolve less critical but still important issues and sections, and refocus on the items that we said it would come down to all along: industry-leading pay, scope and necessary key work rule changes.
Once the two parties are close, the National Mediation Board has a great deal of power to push both sides towards an agreement, by punishing behavior at the bargaining table not conducive to reaching an agreement. In contrast to the Bush Administration’s prohibition on strikes in the transportation industry, the Obama Administration’s NMB has shown no such compunction. Already Alaska, Hawaiian, Spirit and, just recently, FedEx, have successfully negotiated improvements to their contracts. The pilots of Spirit Airlines were permitted to go on strike by the NMB because Spirit’s management refused to budge from their “take it or leave it” negotiating position. In contrast, at American the NMB made the services of the mediator unavailable for a time between the APA and the company because of the lack of movement at the table.
To that end, I have directed our negotiators to meet with the company on an extremely aggressive schedule in order to get to a point where the NMB will be able to use its authority to push both parties to a successful JCBA. I am confident that this will occur in as expeditious a manner as is possible under the circumstances, and will do everything in my power to make it happen. We have but one focus – Contract, Contract, Contract!
Fraternally,
Captain Wendy Morse
Chairman, UAL-MEC""
"""united airline pilots have been without a contract since 2007. ual pilots latest update February 25, 2011.
"" Message From the Master Chairman
Many pilots have understandably expressed concerns and questions about the progress of contract negotiations. Obviously none of us are pleased with where we are to date. We wanted this negotiation complete in the weeks following the merger announcement.
When the MEC approved the Transition and Process agreement, all parties to the agreement were planning on achieving a new Joint Collective Bargaining Agreement (JCBA) by October 2010. At the time this seemed a difficult but not impossible target date, but only if there were absolutely no hitches in the negotiations process, which, as we know, did not come to pass.
The current hurdle, however, remains the gulf between the terms of the company’s and ALPA’s comprehensive proposals, made on October 28 and December 15, respectively. Quite simply, the two offers are far apart with numerous open items. None of the parties fully appreciated the extent of the differences in the two airlines and the amount of challenging, painstaking work required to marry such dissimilar corporate cultures and contracts, but, again this is where we find ourselves today.
So, where do we go from here? We understand the urgency of fixing our substandard contracts. We also recognize that days turn into weeks and weeks turn into months, and that this has to stop to get the contract we deserve in the near term. Therefore, last month we orchestrated a series of meetings with all the parties including one which CAL-MEC Chairman Jay Pierce and I met with UAL CEO Jeff Smisek . We reiterated our desire to move negotiations forward as expeditiously as possible. Getting to an agreement requires meeting and we couldn’t allow this time to pass with no interaction while waiting for the NMB process to begin. As a result of that meeting, and to continue to move the process, both ALPA and the company negotiating teams continued to meet at the table, even prior to the first meeting with the National Mediation Board in Washington last Friday, February 18.
National Mediation Board member Linda Puchala, Senior Mediator Patricia Sims, and Mediator Gerry McGuckin were very direct during our two-hour meeting. Ms. Puchala said that they are dedicating mediator time at taxpayer expense and that they expect the parties to make good use of the federal mediator’s time by negotiating toward an agreement. She said when it is apparent that the parties are in a position to move expeditiously and are making progress at the negotiating table, the Board’s role is to make the mediator available at increasing intervals. Mr. McGuckin will be coming to observe negotiations next week. His schedule thereafter and the degree of the NMB’s involvement in our weekly negotiating schedule could vary from one to two weeks a month to every week, and will depend on his assessment of the rate of progress in negotiations. The NMB exists for the purpose of bringing parties to agreement and times the full placement of its limited resources to bring contracts to conclusion. Complete allocation of mediator time will occur at the point of negotiations when bargaining has reached its mature stage.
It is the view of the MEC and its advisors that a window of opportunity for an expedited industry-leading contract opened with the announcement of the merger last May, but there is always a risk that this window of opportunity could shrink for many reasons. We all read the news and recognize that external factors that are beyond our control, such as the price of oil as an emotional and speculative result of the revolts in the Middle East, are not helpful. The time is now to get an agreement for all kinds of reasons, including that we do not control the window and clearly because we have lived under this agreement for far too long and it is well past due.
UAL management continues to reiterate that they share our desire to achieve a JCBA, and they appreciate that they cannot effectively compete in the world marketplace with a bifurcated pilot group. Wall Street also understands that United’s business traffic customers are far more demanding than U.S. Airways’ cost-conscious clientele. Markets will reward our more direct competitors, such as Delta, that avoided protracted contract negotiations. Such employee buy-in directly enhances customer service and the bottom line.
At the moment, with $8.7 billion in cash, albeit not absent debt, the company can and must manage and pay for merger-related expenses, including a JCBA. Thus, the task at hand is to quickly resolve less critical but still important issues and sections, and refocus on the items that we said it would come down to all along: industry-leading pay, scope and necessary key work rule changes.
Once the two parties are close, the National Mediation Board has a great deal of power to push both sides towards an agreement, by punishing behavior at the bargaining table not conducive to reaching an agreement. In contrast to the Bush Administration’s prohibition on strikes in the transportation industry, the Obama Administration’s NMB has shown no such compunction. Already Alaska, Hawaiian, Spirit and, just recently, FedEx, have successfully negotiated improvements to their contracts. The pilots of Spirit Airlines were permitted to go on strike by the NMB because Spirit’s management refused to budge from their “take it or leave it” negotiating position. In contrast, at American the NMB made the services of the mediator unavailable for a time between the APA and the company because of the lack of movement at the table.
To that end, I have directed our negotiators to meet with the company on an extremely aggressive schedule in order to get to a point where the NMB will be able to use its authority to push both parties to a successful JCBA. I am confident that this will occur in as expeditious a manner as is possible under the circumstances, and will do everything in my power to make it happen. We have but one focus – Contract, Contract, Contract!
Fraternally,
Captain Wendy Morse
Chairman, UAL-MEC""
Metroyet
Veteran
- Nov 1, 2008
- 2,571
- 5,664
You should have attempted to get Hired at UAL, (unlikely) if you're so enamored of them. Wouldn't it be nice if your "union" could even keep a straight face when attempting to describe their focus?
Litigation, Litigation, Litigation! doesn't quite have the same ring to it. How about:
Stagnation, Poverty, Delay!!...Does that sound more appropriate?
I love watching you guys squirm in the Eastie bed you all collectively soiled. It makes me smile.
You should have attempted to get Hired at UAL, (unlikely) if you're so enamored of them. Wouldn't it be nice if your "union" could even keep a straight face when attempting to describe their focus?
Litigation, Litigation, Litigation! doesn't quite have the same ring to it. How about:
Stagnation, Poverty, Delay!!...Does that sound more appropriate?
I love watching you guys squirm in the Eastie bed you all collectively soiled. It makes me smile.
You should have tried to get on with AWA or US Airways since you are so enamored with them, and your not a US pilot and all. Right?
Also, note to Wendy: It's US Airways, not U.S. Airways.
Metroyet
Veteran
- Nov 1, 2008
- 2,571
- 5,664
Exactly right. You seem to have a short memory.
sumadarson
Veteran
- Nov 17, 2010
- 851
- 905
You should have attempted to get Hired at UAL, (unlikely) if you're so enamored of them. Wouldn't it be nice if your "union" could even keep a straight face when attempting to describe their focus?
Litigation, Litigation, Litigation! doesn't quite have the same ring to it. How about:
Stagnation, Poverty, Delay!!...Does that sound more appropriate?
I love watching you guys squirm in the Eastie bed you all collectively soiled. It makes me smile.
united has 1400 plus pilots on furlough, no new contract since 2007, cal since 2008. You were on furlough for two years yet you complain about the USAPA progress. You were hired by awa because you were the bottom of the food chain.
Your awa pilots flew drugs, flew drunk and crossed picket lines to stay alive, you must be proud.
sumadarson
Veteran
- Nov 17, 2010
- 851
- 905
You sold your former Piedmont pilots down the river, you must be proud. But you got yours, doh, retirement, etc, You must be proud attacking your former pia pilots on this board daily.
Boeing Boy post on flyer talk below when he retired a few years ago.
""Thanks for the well wishes, gang. I'll just copy the post I made on a similiar thread over on USAviation.....
-----
I've waited till the final notes of the fat lady's song faded away before adding to this thread....
My heartfelt thanks for all the kind words. All of you have become something of an extended cyberspace family and your well wishes mean a lot.
No person could wish for a better sendoff than these last three days have given me. It started with ShellNYC, whose inbound flight to CLT Friday was to be our outbound equipment.
My better half, joined us in CLT on Saturday for the flight to JAX where AtlanticBeach and his lovely wife had invited us to spend the night. After an evening of their gracious hospitality, waking up to the sound of the waves breaking on the beach sure beats any crew hotel I've ever stayed at.
The first big surprise came as we were departing JAX Sunday morning - fire trucks on either side of the taxiway to give us a dousing as we went by. I'll probably never know who arranged that, but they have my eternal gratitude.
Arriving in DCA, Art joined us for the flight to CLT. An added bonus was A stopping by the airport to add her best wishes.
In CLT, the group began to swell - and I'm not just talking about the amount of BBQ we ate. jimcfsus, l4pi, coachrowsy, dukeman plus his lovely wife, and (our youngest daughter) joined the group for the BOS turn. As fate would have it - being that for one day, at least, I was the oldest pilot at US - our airplane was the first 737-400 delivered to Piedmont in 1988. It seemed somehow fitting.
Arriving in BOS, I received the second from last surprise of the trip - an old friend from my former life of flying DC-3's was awaiting our arrival and joined the group for the last leg (of the day, the trip, and my career) to CLT. Needless to say, F/C was quite festive as we winged our way southwestward.
Passing west of NYC we get a selcal message to call LGA ops. Wondering what anyone could possibly want - surely I hadn't screwed anything up that much - we called LGA as directed. Who should answer our call but LGA777, adding his best wishes and providing the next to last surprise of the day.
Finally, into CLT for the final (in more ways than one) approach - #1 for 36R. Turning off the runway I was greeted by the final surprise of the day - firetrucks on either side of the taxiway once again. I'll probably never know who pulled what strings - the Chief Pilot had told me at the start of the trip that they had tried to arrange the water salute but that CLT didn't do them after dark. But whoever the Angel was, it capped off a memorial trip and career, with a great crew, a wonderful group of friends, and family to share it with.
So, again, thanks to everyone and if you're ever anywhere near High Point, NC, let me know.
(or "Rockfish", "Rockford", "Maverick")
9/4/79 - 11/19/06
Looking back on a great career and forward to a great retirement""
ThirdSeatHero
Veteran
A few days ago it was 2006 now its 2007, check your dates!
Again, the Pilots CBA at UAL became amendable in January 2010
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