Gary Drummond put out a letter urging that we Boycott and merger Celebrations out there. His letter focuses of the fact that US management has been stalling for three years in Contract Negotiations. As I said to their management team last year "if you treat your current workers like crap why should we believe you will treat us any better".
I agree. We should boycott any opening day celebrations. What are we celebrating? The fact that the largest carrier in the world was built upon the ruins of our careers, our hopes and our dreams?
AA has us locked into a concessionary deal till the end of 2018, so that makes it at least 15 years of massive concessions which includes the loss of 75 days of Vacation, 150 Holidays, 105 sick days, at least $200,000 in wages, 40,000 jobs, the loss of our Pensions and retiree medical along with dozens of other concessions. We have already seen our Medical go up by 600%. In real terms our compensation has been slashed by over 50% and we are at a very distant last in the industry in every measure of compensation and work rules. From 2003 to 2013 AA saw their revenues soar, in other words the concessions from us were not even needed. Our concessions and in the increased revenues enriched Oil companies, Airports, Bankers and Shareholders of the companies that AA did business with (often one and the same) as they either jacked up their charges or continued collecting revenue on redundant assets (such as Folkers and terminal space in abandoned hubs). Then to top it off, AA sought the assistance of the Federal government to impose even more concessions on us after dragging out No-gotiations for three years,, with the help of some now gone Union officials they managed to intimidate just enough workers to accept six years of even more onerous concessions on top of the 9 they already got.
Sure those Union Officials and the old management team are no longer running the place, or so we are told, but the new management team has not treated their workers at US any better than the team at AA treated us. They took their employees through two rounds of BK and for three years have refused to put forth an offer that would bring their employees even close to what other carriers who also went through Bankruptcy are paying. Their suffering started in 2002 and they remain right next to us at the bottom of the industry 11 years later.
Without the Merger AA's legal team boasted in court that when they come out of Bankruptcy that they would be earning close top $3 billion a year in profits, that's with a carrier that would have been 28% smaller than what they have formed, and on top of paying the lowest wages with the worst benefits the NEW AA will remain the only carrier to not even offer their workers Profit Sharing.
There is nothing to celebrate for us, I would say that if anything we should be wearing black armbands. Sure we will be getting some Equity, but its only a small fraction of what they have taken, and will continue to take.
I agree. We should boycott any opening day celebrations. What are we celebrating? The fact that the largest carrier in the world was built upon the ruins of our careers, our hopes and our dreams?
AA has us locked into a concessionary deal till the end of 2018, so that makes it at least 15 years of massive concessions which includes the loss of 75 days of Vacation, 150 Holidays, 105 sick days, at least $200,000 in wages, 40,000 jobs, the loss of our Pensions and retiree medical along with dozens of other concessions. We have already seen our Medical go up by 600%. In real terms our compensation has been slashed by over 50% and we are at a very distant last in the industry in every measure of compensation and work rules. From 2003 to 2013 AA saw their revenues soar, in other words the concessions from us were not even needed. Our concessions and in the increased revenues enriched Oil companies, Airports, Bankers and Shareholders of the companies that AA did business with (often one and the same) as they either jacked up their charges or continued collecting revenue on redundant assets (such as Folkers and terminal space in abandoned hubs). Then to top it off, AA sought the assistance of the Federal government to impose even more concessions on us after dragging out No-gotiations for three years,, with the help of some now gone Union officials they managed to intimidate just enough workers to accept six years of even more onerous concessions on top of the 9 they already got.
Sure those Union Officials and the old management team are no longer running the place, or so we are told, but the new management team has not treated their workers at US any better than the team at AA treated us. They took their employees through two rounds of BK and for three years have refused to put forth an offer that would bring their employees even close to what other carriers who also went through Bankruptcy are paying. Their suffering started in 2002 and they remain right next to us at the bottom of the industry 11 years later.
Without the Merger AA's legal team boasted in court that when they come out of Bankruptcy that they would be earning close top $3 billion a year in profits, that's with a carrier that would have been 28% smaller than what they have formed, and on top of paying the lowest wages with the worst benefits the NEW AA will remain the only carrier to not even offer their workers Profit Sharing.
There is nothing to celebrate for us, I would say that if anything we should be wearing black armbands. Sure we will be getting some Equity, but its only a small fraction of what they have taken, and will continue to take.