ALPA MEC code-a-phone message - July 4, 2005
This is Bill Pollock with an ALPA code-a-phone message for Monday, July 4.
Fellow pilots, it is an honor to record this message for you on Independence Day, 2005. A day during which we, as Americans, celebrate the signing of the Declaration of Independence, a bold declaration which, among other things, declared American intolerance to tyranny, control, greed, misapplication of power over, and lack of representation of, the American people. The Declaration of Independence is a message for all time which connects with the human spirit of high minded Americans.
In this message I will speak about modern day greed and lust for power and what we must do to stop it.
Over this past year we have come an incredibly long way. With the will to fight and to compete we entered into an agreement that provided management with a fully competitive labor contract. This contract, while providing management a competitive cost structure, also produced sparse returns for the pilots. The returns included profit sharing, ownership of the company in the form of a modest equity position, and a voice on the board of directors.
In reaching a competitive contract we have seen the loss of our pension, rates of pay, vacations, medical and dental benefits. Our pilots are working more long days with trip pairings that still have not delivered on the efficiency we bargained for and our airline still struggles to improve its operational performance despite the fact that all labor agreements are fully implemented. Too many promises have come up short. But, every day our pilots are keeping this airline flying and “making it work.â€
Greed and the failed partnership with the Labor:
Despite the more than 7 Billion dollars in economic value taken from our contract over the next several years, and despite assurances that we would proceed forward as partners in the process, we have recently learned that management intends to deny us even the modest returns we achieved in our recently signed agreement – LOA 93. This at the same time management rewards themselves with a multi-million dollar management severance and retention package. Can they do this? Not without abrogating our contract in the bankruptcy court. Will they try to take this from us? You can bet they will.
Here’s what we know: Management tells us that the investors in the reorganized US Airways are investing only on their terms and that their terms demand diminished profit sharing for us (so there is more for them), drastically reduced equity for us (so there is more for them), and no Labor participation on the Board of Directors (so that the pilots have no voice in the direction of the company we have sacrificed so much to build). What management negotiated with us less than a year ago they now say they intend to take back to satisfy investors. This is no longer about being cost competitive. This is a full betrayal of our partnership and represents greed in its purest form and it must be stopped. ALPA will use ever weapon in our arsenal to put an end to this greed. But, as it has always been, the unity of our membership is our greatest strength. We need you to stand with us to fight this perverse injustice and affront to all pilots.
We may ask little of you directly as we prepare for and fight this battle. We do ask that you stand united with us as we stand up for our rights and for morality. Stay informed by listening to the code-a-phone and other MEC communications. Believe in yourself and recognize that it is the pilot’s sacrifices that have made this reorganization possible.
Stay focused on your flying, know and live by your contract, and know that we will fight to see that greed does not rob us of our future, our pride, or our rights under our standing contractual agreements.
My very best to you on this Independence Day.
Thanks for listening.
Regards,
USA320Pilot
This is Bill Pollock with an ALPA code-a-phone message for Monday, July 4.
Fellow pilots, it is an honor to record this message for you on Independence Day, 2005. A day during which we, as Americans, celebrate the signing of the Declaration of Independence, a bold declaration which, among other things, declared American intolerance to tyranny, control, greed, misapplication of power over, and lack of representation of, the American people. The Declaration of Independence is a message for all time which connects with the human spirit of high minded Americans.
In this message I will speak about modern day greed and lust for power and what we must do to stop it.
Over this past year we have come an incredibly long way. With the will to fight and to compete we entered into an agreement that provided management with a fully competitive labor contract. This contract, while providing management a competitive cost structure, also produced sparse returns for the pilots. The returns included profit sharing, ownership of the company in the form of a modest equity position, and a voice on the board of directors.
In reaching a competitive contract we have seen the loss of our pension, rates of pay, vacations, medical and dental benefits. Our pilots are working more long days with trip pairings that still have not delivered on the efficiency we bargained for and our airline still struggles to improve its operational performance despite the fact that all labor agreements are fully implemented. Too many promises have come up short. But, every day our pilots are keeping this airline flying and “making it work.â€
Greed and the failed partnership with the Labor:
Despite the more than 7 Billion dollars in economic value taken from our contract over the next several years, and despite assurances that we would proceed forward as partners in the process, we have recently learned that management intends to deny us even the modest returns we achieved in our recently signed agreement – LOA 93. This at the same time management rewards themselves with a multi-million dollar management severance and retention package. Can they do this? Not without abrogating our contract in the bankruptcy court. Will they try to take this from us? You can bet they will.
Here’s what we know: Management tells us that the investors in the reorganized US Airways are investing only on their terms and that their terms demand diminished profit sharing for us (so there is more for them), drastically reduced equity for us (so there is more for them), and no Labor participation on the Board of Directors (so that the pilots have no voice in the direction of the company we have sacrificed so much to build). What management negotiated with us less than a year ago they now say they intend to take back to satisfy investors. This is no longer about being cost competitive. This is a full betrayal of our partnership and represents greed in its purest form and it must be stopped. ALPA will use ever weapon in our arsenal to put an end to this greed. But, as it has always been, the unity of our membership is our greatest strength. We need you to stand with us to fight this perverse injustice and affront to all pilots.
We may ask little of you directly as we prepare for and fight this battle. We do ask that you stand united with us as we stand up for our rights and for morality. Stay informed by listening to the code-a-phone and other MEC communications. Believe in yourself and recognize that it is the pilot’s sacrifices that have made this reorganization possible.
Stay focused on your flying, know and live by your contract, and know that we will fight to see that greed does not rob us of our future, our pride, or our rights under our standing contractual agreements.
My very best to you on this Independence Day.
Thanks for listening.
Regards,
USA320Pilot
