I can certainly understand your reasoning behind going independent, but the reality of the situation with our independent union PFAA (at this time) is that they are broke and can no longer afford to operate on their own. $4.5 million a year in dues (and 55% of that money went to pay PFAA salaries every year). When we tried to amend the bylaw regarding salaries last year, the executive board campaigned to defeat it and won.
As of March '06, PFAA HAD around $4,000 in cash (I suspect that number is even lower by now) and I won't even tell you how far they are in debt .... it's too embarrassing (but you can go to the DOL website and look at their LM-2 for 2005 to get a glimpse of how dire the situation was even on 12-31-05).
The bottom line here is that the NWA FAs have ONLY two choices at the present time:
AFA or a merger with TWU
That is why I am asking for feedback from your group so that we can find out more information surrounding TWU FA representation.
Thanks for your input!
55% is low. In the TWU a much higher percentage goes towards compensation, mainly because the salaries are so high. I think your leadership is selling you out. I have no doubt that your leadership compared what TWU officials get paid to what the AFA pays and thats why they are trying to get you guys into the TWU. Despite the fact that the TWU is a small union they pay their officers and employees very well. For instance if you look at the LM-2 you will see that International Reps, which is the lowest rung on the International, get paid more than the President of the AFA. The President of the TWU makes around double of what the President of the AFA earns.
Once these guys bring you into the TWU their futures are guaranteed, no matter what happens to you. The TWU rewards people who serve their intrests and punishes those who work for their members intrests. So your leaders will be rewarded for selling you and your profession out. Peggy Olstein was a flight attendant, all her coworkers lost their jobs under the TWU but she managed to keep her six figure salary with the TWU. The same goes for John Kerrigan, all his coworkers from Pan Am lost their jobs, even after Kerrigan ushered in industry leading concessions, but his pay continues to climb, Bakala comes from the same place.
Now as far as Jim Little, where do I start? From what I've seen,the man is a pathalogical liar. He hid his management past and lied about his education. He would often cite that his union roots "went all the back to his Grandfather in Scotland" but leave out the fact that he was in AA management, in fact his father in law was also in AA management. Over Jims union career he has served AA management very well, giving AMR the lowest real labor rates in the industry.
So with the TWU PFAA leaders get nice six figure salaries that dwarf what they could ever hope to get at the AFA. Along with the six figure salaries TWU International employees, reps and officers get an extremely generous pension package that has a 5% COLA built into it. Somebody has to pay for these things, so the TWU needs more members, and they will say anything in order to get them.
So for the leadres of the PFAA the TWU is a much more rewarding choice BUT with the TWU PFAA
members get:
Jim Little-AMR loyalist, a plant within the union from AMR management who has now become the top man in the TWU.
John Kerrigan-an old tired ex-Pan Am worker who apparently must have stolen so much from the union as Treasurer that despite his advanced age he refusees to retire. Why else would he stay in that position? The man has been a sell out for the last 25 years, usually siding with management in every dispute, including the recent Local 100-MTA strike in NYC.
Mike Bakala- a thug from Pan Am who has no real purpose other than being Kerrigans muscle.
They get a union that tells the membership that the locals are autonomous but then tell the courts the opposite if the Locals actually attempt to act as if the are autonoumous.
They get a union that says that Local officers must be loyal to the International ahead of the members, and if a Local officer claims to work for the members first the International removes them.
They get to fund the high salaries and perks of TWU International officials.
They get industry leading concessions.
They get a union that tells the members to accept whatever the company offers.
If you vote in the TWU you will basically be voting in a company union that is loyal to AMR. Over half the membership of the Air Transport Division of the TWU are from AMR, the parent company of American Airlines and Amercan Eagle, the main competitor of NWA and the airline that helped put NWA in the position its in now. Another thing to consider is that if AMR should take over NWA the flight attendants at AA, who voted out the TWU decades ago, for the same reason you guys voted out the Teamsters, are in an independant union and they would staple you guys under the TWA FAs, most of whom are still laid off.
So the TWU offers you, the member, nothing that the AFA cant offer you. They are not nearly as big as the Teamsters, so they cant offer you the clout of a big union, they represent many different types of workers in many different industries therefore can not specialize in your needs. In fact you will have even less resources to work with since 30% of your dues will now go to the International in order to fund the salaries and perks of the International.Basically the $4.5 million that is now spent representing you will be cut down to $3million with no reduction in dues.However your officers can expect big pay increases.
I agree that you should try and merge,the labor movement needs to consolidate, but make sure that you merge with the right organization, sure the AFA has problems, but they are a union that specializes in meeting the needs of flight attendants, they offer AFL-CIO affiliation and an accountable leadership, unlike the TWU. The TWU specializes in meeting the needs of corporations, like American Airlines.
Your leadership has proven to be untrustworthy by endorsing the TWU, clearly they are looking at the much higher pay rates for TWU officials and their own best intrests and not what is best for you.
