[USAPAWATCH.COM
http://usapawatch.com
Thursday, April 02, 2009
More stuff and another election
A Temporary Presidency
Just when you thought you were safe from the daily dose of political emails from the power hungry national officer candidates, we feel obligated to report that the cease fire is only temporary. Mr. Cleary may think he won the presidency last week, but his ascension to the throne is only temporary. Unreported by PMI Theuer and the USAPA noise machine is the investigation by the Department of Labor into the legality of the election. TheEye has confirmed that the election will be overturned and we will once again be subjected to a daily dose of manure in our inboxes by those seeking the presidency.
USAPA members hungry for a second bite at the apple in Judge Wake’s court room will have to settle for that second bite coming in the form of an election redo. Since USAPA advertises itself as the sole source of the truth, we will defer to PMI Theuer to enlighten us with the sordid details of this major blunder by the self appointed Cleary faction. In fact, it wasn’t really a blunder at all but a spear right through the core of democracy itself.
USAPA’s flippant attitude towards free elections is proof positive that the Association is nothing more than an authoritarian state. The people (or pilots in this instance) are completely powerless.
We encourage all members to call their domicile reps and national officers for their version of the story. Regardless of what they tell you, there will be another vote.
Fortunately for the membership, standing between Mr. Cleary and absolute power is the Department of Labor and the U.S. Constitution.
The good news is that maybe next time a better candidate with true leadership skills will step forward.
With no money in the bank – Section 29 must be the answer!
USAPA has decided to go after 250 pilots who have apparently done nothing - that is they have not applied for membership or objector status. We guess Mr. Seham decided these pilots were low hanging fruit and ripe for harassment. The out of control legal bills pouring into USAPA’s headquarters must be so overwhelming that a desperate attempt to coerce more potential members for money was just too much for Mr. Cleary’s new (and temporary) regime to pass up. We are not sure, but it seems to be business as usual at USAPA - and rather than work out ways to increase unity and membership, the USAPA leadership and their advisors continue to find ways to divide the group.
LCC for Sale or Restructuring in our Future
A cause for concern for all pilots is the return of former AWA Executive VP Steve Johnson. For those new to this debacle, Mr. Johnson was Bill Franke's “yes this airline is for sale†right hand man (Franke and Johnson were the west equivalents of Wolfe and Gangwal). Given Mr. Johnson's anti-labor bent, as well as his bankruptcy and restructuring legal background, we were wondering if this signals some changes in our future. Of course the bond rating agencies keep lowering our credit ratings, our stock is still the lowest among our peers and we’re dumping seats for cents on the dollar on Priceline and Hotwire faster than Mr. Parker can spend his salary buying stock. We have no idea what the future holds, but Mr. Johnson's arrival does not bode well for any hope for a positive turn in labor relations at this company - and that is probably a direct result of USAPA's terrible performance at the negotiating table and their failure to build any positive relationships with management to get us anywhere close to on track for a new contract.
Just to recap the “stuff†going on:
The presidential election will be overturned by the DOL.
USAPA is broke.
The airline is probably for sale.
The trial starts April 28 and it’s not a second bite at the apple.
What’s the definition of insanity again?