AMFAinMIAMI
Veteran
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- #31
Seriously, do you really just make this stuff up as you go along? AMFA is waiting for CO and UA to integrate? Are you kidding me? If they wait until that happens they will have no chance at all (not that they do now). Integration means the completion of the contract and essentially a new airline with one contract. Once this happens good luck getting anyone to volunteer to get back in to an election campaign cycle. We will all be happy when this is over. You will have your unhappy mechanics who I am sure will do what they can to keep the fires stoked fr changing unions again, but they have never left and seldom get attention.
We do welcome our CO IBT brothers, but they are governed according to their contract, and we by ours. The company loves your attitude of just "bring them all in", but the costs to the company are more involved by having two separate agreements (three if you add Air Mic). We will welcome them and they will welcome us when the company gives us ONE agreement. Until then, we work within our crew, and they with theirs.
Will both groups be happy? Probably not. Nobody on the UA or CO Board of Directors bothered to ask any of us mechanics if we approved the merger. There are many CO mechanics at the most junior stations who are worried about their new placement on the seniority system. Unlike AMFA, the IBT is pushing for a simple Date of Hire seniority system which is the most popular resolution. It is not, unfortunately, the unanimous choice.
Also unfortunate, in my opinion, is that the IBT has decided to waste time and listen to the ideas and concerns of the few and less senior stations. The IBT said it would be Date of Hire, but when a few small Locals pushed back, they listened to these guys and considered the requests of different seniority integration ideas. In the end, date of hire will win out and I wish the IBT would have just came out on day one and stuck to that. This is again my opinion only, and I am sure not what the junior mechanics in Houston, Cleavland or Orlando will want to hear that. They want credit or something that would give them seniority over 20+ year UAL mechanics. Too bad. This is not WN or AMFA. Date of hire is fair!! Listening to the members is what has been adding time to the merger of the seniority lists. I am not saying that I do not want all members to be heard, just in this case it does little to change the outcome, and plenty to wast time. My peeve maybe, but every single UA mechanic I know agrees with date of hire, and almost half of the CO mechanics do as well according to the survey.
Integrating the agreements is not a function left up to the IBT alone. It involves negotiating with the company and even that is now subject to the schedule of the NMB. Since we entered in to Mediation, we no longer have the luxury of setting up our own meeting schedule.
You ask what is going to happen with the CAL pensions? To answer your question however, no; the IBT leaders are NOT telling CAL they will sacrifice their pensions. I guess we will both have to wait for the conclusion of negotiations to see how this turns out.
As far as CO hiring new mechanics? In the mechanics eyes, both sides, we do not really care who's name is on the tail. We are two separate companies and until the company advances our salaries, and increases benefits on both sides, that is how we will act. Continental is hiring off the street, United is not. I am not taking a cut in pay to start over at CO, would you?
You still did not answer my question how can you have guys on layoff at united and still have CAL hiring off the street during integration and contract negotiations.
Date of hire is good for you so are we talking company time or occupational date?
makes a big difference is some started on ramp then moved to maintenance. Or from a different group with in the maintanance group like gse or facilities before getting A&P?
Don't you think it would serve all better if they finished intergration how ever before destroying CAL contract or is the IBT planning on doing it to the CAL guys without their input? I hear that IBT wants to have the CAL pension frozen and then have them moved in the western Conf. plan of the IBT? What about that?
UAL has some type of 401K plan why is yours different than the UPS deal? Same Union, why cant you guys get what the UPS guys have? Don't tell me not same company since the pension plan how ever it is, is run by the IBT and you must be a Teamster to get in.