Unions, Airline Face Thorny Issues

[1L1R2L2R]

JUST OFF THE "JUST PLANE NEWS" PRESS

Even more daunting for the management of a merged US Airways-America West Airlines than improving Philadelphia service may be integrating the unionized pilot and flight-attendant workforces at the two carriers, airline analysts say. The job is expected to take two to three years to complete.
Numerous aspects of pilots' and flight attendants' jobs, including pay and duty assignments, are based on seniority. Because US Airways is an older company, and thousands of its less-senior employees have been laid off since 2001, most of those still on the payroll have more seniority than those at America West.
"Labor is a really difficult issue," said Michael Roach, an airline consultant in San Francisco who was a cofounder of America West. "The history of mergers is fraught with problems." At the same time, Roach said, W. Douglas Parker, who will lead the new US Airways, "has shown real skill in dealing with labor problems to date."

 

[EyeInTheSky]

"It just goes to show you. It's always something. If it's not one thing, it's another." - Roseanne Rosannadanna

 

[A320 Driver]

While certainly an issue, I don't see this stretching out "years". A negotiated agreement is always superior to an arbitrated one and at least by appearances progress is being made. Lots of issues on the pilot side. AW has no "heavy" flying (A330/B-767) and the U pilots are losing jobs due to all these aircraft being returned. On the other hand, the AW pilots shouldn't lose jobs to accommodate the older and more senior U pilot group. A negotiator once said that the sign of a "good" merger was when both sides were "equally" ticked off. We'll see how the tensions rise over the next few months. Two things for sure: it WILL get done and not everyone will be happy with the outcome. That's overstating the obvious but my point is, once the dust settles we'll all be better off. Time is the great healer and if this management is as good as everyone says it is aggravation will give way to excitement for many of the employees.

A320 Driver B)

 

[ALCARLOS]

With much of US 737 flying being taken over by express 170/190, will there be many pilots that remain and need to be integrated into that flying segment?

 

[nycbusdriver]

A negotiated agreement is always superior to an arbitrated one and at least by appearances progress is being made.

[post="296703"][/post]​

I disagree. At least with an arbitrated settlement, no colleague can be blamed for the outcome. The arbitrator is happy to play the heavy and this leaves less divisiveness within the pilot group. There is less of an atmosphere of betrayal by one's own.

In a negotiated agreement in this case, if the PERCEPTION among AWA pilots is that the US pilots got a better deal, the AWA pilots will feel betrayed by their negotiators. The same is true if the PERCEPTION among the US pilots is that the AWA got a better deal in a negotiated agreement. At least with an arbitrator ruling, both sides can bemoan the fact that "we gave it our best shot" but the arbitrator made the decision.

I agree that no matter what happens, pretty much everyone will be "ticked off." The only exception is the pilot who ends up #1 on the seniority list. He's the sole happy camper.

 

[nycbusdriver]

"It just goes to show you. It's always something. If it's not one thing, it's another." - Roseanne Rosannadanna

[post="296700"][/post]​

Actually, I believe Roseanne Rosannadanna herself attributed this particular quote to her nanna, Nanna Rosannadanna.

(I really miss Gilda.)