Saw this thread and thought I'd join and post...as an NWA employee for 5 years, I'm glad this piece of you-know-what union was voted out. Our union rep was the laziest guy ever, sat around all day with his feet up on the table and barked orders at you like he was God. I never wanted to be part-time either, for years I've tried getting a full time position but the union did nothing to help. Instead, they intimidated and harassed the part-time guys and I didn't even WANT to be part-time, so you can understand my frustration. IAM is probably the worst union to have represent you, and I'm looking forward to a direct relationship with Delta...the way I see it, it can't be any worse than it was with the IAM. A few of of us guys flipped our rep the bird as soon as we found out the union got voted out, lazy bastard gets to work outside with us now. We're gonna have fun with him!!
Falco,
can I tell you that I am more than a little disappointed to read this?
It was a given that there would be disappointment surrounding the vote(s) because one side would lose. For approximately one-half of the now combined DL workforce, there was going to be a big cultural change regardless of the outcome of the vote. The fact that the vote results for all of the major work groups was pretty close to half and half shows that DL has a pretty divided workforce - and it will take time to bring everyone together.
As one who has followed Delta for more than 35 years, I can assure you that a huge part of the Delta culture is that it has been willing to change and assimilate other ideas and cultures as part of the evolutions that DL has gone through. Let me remind you that DL is what it is today SOLELY because it has aggressively participated in mergers and acquisitions FOR DECADES - and in so doing has transforned Delta from a small, regional airline in the Southeast (which at the time could have rightfully called the backwaters of the USA) to an airline with operations on every continent and corner of the US and which has in its DNA some of the finest airlines in the history of US aviation.
But I can assure you having watched DL that previous mergers have not been easy - and it has only been as people from both sides have recognized that they need to work TOGETHER to make DL WIN long term in order for EVERYONE to win individually that the partisan bickering has ended.
If the vote results stand, it will be apparent that there were many PMNW people who do not see the value of unions and there weren't enough PMDL people supportive of representation for the unions to succeed.
But the minute the vote is affirmed as valid in each workgroup, you become one workgroup and I trust you WILL NOT take the opportunity to try to correct whatever wrongs might have been done in the past. If that former union rep. can't hold his own on in the frontline position which he will now have to do, it will become apparent to those who can and will make changes.
But I can assure you that there are plenty of people on both sides of the representation issue who were and are solid workers and they will not miss a beat in doing their best - which helps DL and each person individually.
While that may sound too pie in the sky to be real, I would simply have you direct your attention to either JetBlue or Southwest, two airlines that are very proud of their culture and use it to bind their employees together to the benefit of the company and the individual employees.
BTW, I see I celebrate a 7 year airlineforums anniversary this weekend.
