IAM Fleet Service topic

[Tim Nelson]

Tim,

What would you have had them do? I am really curious as to how you think the protections could have been extended, knowing full well how this company operates, and without pulling a deal like canoli would have done. (A deal that would have had a negative affect on the rest of the membership, because the company would not give something for nothing right?) You and I both know that the company was not going to renegotiate those protections early. But you are right on one thing, we can'y dwell on the past. This P.O.S. agreement was passed by the membership as a whole, so we all have to live with it. What the focus should be on now, is, what can we get in the future, am I right? Who pissed in your wheaties?

PJ,
I would have scrapped the entire playbook, which was totally predictable and right out of IAM 101 school of representation. What has happened and what continues to happen is a total disregard for the fleet service craft. There is NO respect towards fleet service. The leadership has failed. It has failed because it has failed to lead. What ever happened to all those attendance point grievances? Where is the contract that you voted on that doesn't contain the 110 word changes? Coming to the end of 2011 without extending job protections isn't an option. Sorry, PJ, I reject your opinion that the company is iron clad. Only the IAM has failed to secure such things. The good thing is that it isn't too late. Canale put fleet service in a deep hole but you have no choice but to dig out of that hole. But fleet service MUST expect respect and it must expect to secure job protections. You guys do a damn good job and even were number 1 AGAIN this month on baggage handling. Kicking Southwest airlines ass and every legacy airlines butt. You guys are productive and damn near efficient as hell. I'll be damn if I'm going to listen to the bull #### leadership telling folks, as they have their finger up their ass, that it's AH fault. Bull ####. Effective negotiations is what is lacking.

Regarding negotiations, two items.
1. You could have anyone on negotiations but it won't change the outcome if the dopes keep running the same plays. For starters, the leadership should have engaged the membership and still should engage the membership. Management doesn't give a rats ass about who is sitting across the table from them, provided the membership is on idle. There are alot of legal things that can be done to get membership participation. But not doing anything isn't an option. Also, when the hell was the last time RD came to CLT? PHL? Hell he didn't even bother going to negotiations last week when fleet service got the bad news. What a dope.

2. The IAM hosed the hell out of its members after it got its ass handed to it at Northwest. What are your negotiators negotiating? I damn sure hope they aren't trying to put more of YOUR money into the IAM pension fund. Ask them, I'd be curious as to their answer. What are they doing until January 2014....singing kumbuya? Unless they can get over $25 bucks an hour to cover the pimping the IAM did to YOUR pension, it won't be worth it. Did any AGC's tell you guys the truth how the IAM screwed the fleet service by pulling a "Robin Hood Reversed" and cutting future pension benefits? I have the letters from the INTL that told everyone that the pension benefit was "Guaranteed". Hogwash!

regards,

Tim Nelson

 

[roabilly]

I hear yah Tim,

Keep us in the loop... are further changes needed?

 

[BLUTO]

I hear yah Tim,

Keep us in the loop... are further changes needed?

Dude, I was told that you guys change leadership like underwear! At what point do you begin to think that the problem lies within the membership?

 

[pjirish317]

Tim,

At this point we will just have to agree to disagree. IMO, the past leadership led us so far down this dark hole, that we are just now beginning to see a little bit of light. The current leadership, for the most part anyway, is busy getting us back into the light. And 4 of the 5 USAirways AGC's, I would ask for, over the last group of a@#wipes that had no idea how to deal with this company of ours. And am I to understand that the current leadership is responsible for our pension fiasco? I thought it was the IAM national pension fund, not DL141 that made that decision. Am I wrong? I'm sorry you feel slighted, I do not. I stand by my vote, and will continue to. I have always respected your opinion, and will continue to do so, but ultimately I will make my own decisions with all the information I can gather. The new leadership is, and continues to be, miles above canoli and his goons. Thats just my opinion though. I would love to hear about a new playbook though. Or new tactics on dealing with this company. Thank you.

 

[Tim Nelson]

I hear yah Tim,

Keep us in the loop... are further changes needed?

Yes, you always have to prune the tree to make it stronger. I do not support RD one bit. When was the last time he came to CLT? Cripes, he didn't even support our negotiations team last week and participate in negotiations. WTH??

regards,

Tim Nelson

 

[Tim Nelson]

Dude, I was told that you guys change leadership like underwear! At what point do you begin to think that the problem lies within the membership?

The problem with the membership is the leadership. The leadership has not cultured the membership at all. It has no idea how to build solidarity one bit. ZERO. What the leadership has done is belittled the membership and talked down to them in a beaten way. I'm tired of hearing , "AH is an #### and he isn't going to give you anything". Why do other unions have things that the IAM doesn't have? I'm tired of hearing "Well, the company will never agree to keep stations open." If the AGC's and the Local Chairman are ignorant enough to say that then what the hell is the membership left to do?

A true leader builds the people up. Organizing and representing folks is no different.....it's called building solidarity. And there isn't a current leader in the bunch. There might be a few decent soldiers but not a one who is original or would stand up to the goofy plays that RD calls. Everything rises and falls on leadership. Yes, the membership has problems but if the leadership empowers the members then that's a good start.

The IAM leadership needs to be 'de-oriented'. And it's not just an IAM problem. Unions in general have to learn to smash down the present paradigms on how they culture the membership.

regards,

Tim Nelson

 

[Tim Nelson]

Tim,

At this point we will just have to agree to disagree. IMO, the past leadership led us so far down this dark hole, that we are just now beginning to see a little bit of light. The current leadership, for the most part anyway, is busy getting us back into the light. And 4 of the 5 USAirways AGC's, I would ask for, over the last group of a@#wipes that had no idea how to deal with this company of ours. And am I to understand that the current leadership is responsible for our pension fiasco? I thought it was the IAM national pension fund, not DL141 that made that decision. Am I wrong? I'm sorry you feel slighted, I do not. I stand by my vote, and will continue to. I have always respected your opinion, and will continue to do so, but ultimately I will make my own decisions with all the information I can gather. The new leadership is, and continues to be, miles above canoli and his goons. Thats just my opinion though. I would love to hear about a new playbook though. Or new tactics on dealing with this company. Thank you.

The previous AGC's were simply terrible and hateful. The current communication sucks. How come the IAM fleet service is the only union that doesn't report to its members on the labor advisory board meetings? Did we propose increasing the IAM pension fund amounts even though we know there is a hole in the pocket and could be in jeorpardy of losing even more pension monies? Presently, the main focus should be on securing extensions for those 19 stations. A letter of agreement could do the trick but it would require effective negotiations and a dogged commitment to obtain it. With the level of productivity and efficiencies of your work group, nothing less should be tolerated. It's about Gosh Darn time I hear a voice from our leadership demanding that these protections be extended. US AIRWAYS fleet service had the NUMBER 1 baggage handling in the month of July and it's just not good enough to put our finger up our ass and say "US AIRWAYS management is mean and doesn't listen". You want US AIRWAYS fleet service to continue being the whipping boy and continue getting its ass handed to it...then don't change a thing. And I don't see any light whatsoever. Not when they just announce another 250 job loss and are at risk of losing more at the end of the year. Quite frankly, I haven't seen the current leadership do a damn thing. What happened to those attendance grievances? Cripes, they completely drowned on getting those pocket sized contracts and the other 100 word changes in the contract that you guys didn't vote for. WTH?

Yeah, I'm back and I'm here to crack skulls [metaphorically] and get people on their toes or get them voted out of office. Sorry PJ, the last folks sucked, but I have not been impressed with the newbies.

regards,

Tim Nelson

 

[Jester]

Yeah, I'm back and I'm here to crack skulls [metaphorically] and get people on their toes or get them voted out of office. Sorry PJ, the last folks sucked, but I have not been impressed with the newbies.

Mr. Nelson,

Pleasure to have you back again on the board, and even my Dear Mr. Roabilly, who has choosen to join in the topic.

As I said on the board a few years ago, we continue to hire amateurs to conduct professional work, and the membership continues to be stunned by the outcome. I told the board then that it reminded me of an expression on how the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over, and expecting different results. Seriously, I wouldn't hire a smart kid on the block to be my attorney, nor the guy who recently aced high school accounting to be my tax advisor, but let's hire a bunch of nice enough and well-intended enough co-workers to make decisions which may costs us our very jobs? The company hires the best and the brightest to represent their interests, and they usually win in important disputes for a reason.

I know you are dedicated to the cause, and I have spoken personally with you while you were making a visit to the West stations back in 2008, but replacing one unqualified group with another unqualified group will yield the same unfavorable results. Now the only question will be when would you be considered to be insane? You are completely right insofar that attendance grievances lack of resolve would be completely unacceptable. People on this board have questioned how the Company was able to contract out some of the stations before the 2012 date, and no response there either. I know that positive change will not happen overnight, but as we are approaching 2012, pending contract negotiations, and after 3 years, the honeymood is over and the reality of supporting a 'family' and the required sacrifice of hard work should be the goal of those who agreed to accept the responsibility.

So Promulgates Jester

 

[700UW]

Tim,

You pushed for the New Direction Team, why dont you hold Delaney, Crowell and O'Donnel accountable.

Arent you a district rep for organizing?

So why happened to your dream team who took over the leadership of 141?

Jester, they arent hired you and your fellow 141 members elected them to their positions.

 

[roabilly]

The problem with the membership is the leadership. The leadership has not cultured the membership at all. It has no idea how to build solidarity one bit. ZERO. What the leadership has done is belittled the membership and talked down to them in a beaten way. I'm tired of hearing , "AH is an #### and he isn't going to give you anything". Why do other unions have things that the IAM doesn't have? I'm tired of hearing "Well, the company will never agree to keep stations open." If the AGC's and the Local Chairman are ignorant enough to say that then what the hell is the membership left to do?

A true leader builds the people up. Organizing and representing folks is no different.....it's called building solidarity. And there isn't a current leader in the bunch. There might be a few decent soldiers but not a one who is original or would stand up to the goofy plays that RD calls. Everything rises and falls on leadership. Yes, the membership has problems but if the leadership empowers the members then that's a good start.

The IAM leadership needs to be 'de-oriented'. And it's not just an IAM problem. Unions in general have to learn to smash down the present paradigms on how they culture the membership.

regards,

Tim Nelson

OK... I guess my next question is when is the next opportunity to do the pruning?

 

[Tim Nelson]

Tim,

You pushed for the New Direction Team, why dont you hold Delaney, Crowell and O'Donnel accountable.

Arent you a district rep for organizing?

So why happened to your dream team who took over the leadership of 141?

Jester, they arent hired you and your fellow 141 members elected them to their positions.

The ND10 team has failed. It failed Aloha, Hawaiian, United, Airtran, and is failing US AIRWAYS. As the saying goes, if you wanna have something done, you better do it yourself. I will be running against RD and exercising the IAM democratic constitution by putting a ticket together. RD is terrible and hasn't come through for anyone. Yes, I was Director of Organizing and was part of winning two campaigns for the IAM, i.e., Airtran and United ramp. 17,000 people. The problem was that I never signed on to organize folks just so the representation arm could drop the ball. Gotta prune the tree to keep people accountable and to make things stronger.

regards,

Tim Nelson

 

[Tim Nelson]

OK... I guess my next question is when is the next opportunity to do the pruning?

February. My presumption is that you will see your President sometime between now and then since he doesn't show up except for elections. I also think it's about time that US AIRWAYS members aren't treated or placed behind other groups in 141. We need a President who actually cares enough to be in negotiations just like he cares about United. No 'free skip' days for negotiations.

regards,

Tim Nelson

 

[Tim Nelson]

Just remember, the IAM entered section 6 talks for the first time in more than one decade, and RD was awol because it just wasn't important enough for him to send a strong image that he supports the US AIRWAYS fleet service members. Then you look at the iam141 web page and they don't even mention anything about the 250 jobs and stations that are affected. How insensitive. Yes, a change is needed to make sure the US AIRWAYS brothers and sisters don't continue being in the back of the line. It's all about United ramp with RD. He just don't listen.

regards,

Tim Nelson

 

[Jimmy Neutron]

if you wanna have something done, you better do it yourself. I will be running against RD and exercising the IAM democratic constitution by putting a ticket together. RD is terrible and hasn't come through for anyone. Gotta prune the tree to keep people accountable and to make things stronger.

regards,

Tim Nelson

I have to chime in here;

Tim, there are a lot of armchair quarterbacks in this league, and that's the problem....as I and many of our co-workers see it, that's exactly what we ended up with here by electing The New Direction team, people who sat around, talked a great game but in the end don't have either the Knowledge or stomach to do the jobs they were elected to do.

I have had some disagreements with you in the past, and like many others had great hopes in the new blood after being absolutely devastated by the Canale Regime, it seems that as more time passes, we have just become the dog that gets kicked time and time again by the company and our own union at the same time, and quite frankly, the natives are getting quite restless..... You would be hard to find many members that are even remotely satisfied with what has been going on in the last few years and the excuses are just getting old here.....

It's hard to find fault in you coming out publicly against the New Direction Team here, so in this instance, I have to agree with you, and respect what it is your doing, which is calling out the (lack of) leadership here and hopefully getting the membership to get up off of their beaten down asses and start to fight again, and if we have to fight the company and the union, so be it....

The way I see it here, is the entire time we have had the IAM, no-one, and I mean no-one has done our devastated membership one bit of justice and seeing someone else that is not afraid to call a kettle black, can't be any worse than we have seen thus far, so I am going to throw my support behind you and your efforts to get us the leadership wit deserve and maybe a bit of our dignity back....

The membership needs to be awakened like a sleeping giant and demand nothing less...

Good Luck!!!!!

 

[700UW]

Is it just RD, what about the US AGCs, been silent from them too.