MEC CODE-A-PHONE UPDATE - August 6, 2007
This is Arnie Gentile with a US Airways MEC update for Monday, August 6th, with three new items.
Item 1. Although the US Airways pilots' frustration with the Nicolau Award is well known throughout our ranks, much of the ALPA community and many other labor unions do not have the details of just how destructive this award is to US Airway’s union pilots. Your MEC has produced a video based on the AAA Merger Committees presentation to ALPA’s Executive Council on May 21, 2007. It features MEC Chairman Jack Stephan and the US Airways MEC Merger Committee and documents for all to see the many inequities of the award. Captain Stephan delivers an overview and each Merger Committee member details the award's components, including the windfall gains received by the America West pilots. It also includes the reading of a letter authored by a former AAA MEC Chairman and actual video clippings from when ALPA President, Captain John Prater, met with the US Airways pilots at ALPA headquarters in Herndon on May 21st. This video, which reinforces our position on the award, will also allow other pilots and union members to understand the precarious situation in which we've found ourselves.
To view the video on your Internet browser, click on the Merger Committee video link that is posted under What's New.
Item 2. The US Airways members of the JNC and the AAA Negotiating Committee have put out a combined update that talks about the pace and the goals of the JNC talks, and how the Nicolau Award has affected discussions with the West MEC.
On this update the Negotiating Committee openly discusses pay parity issues and polling issues including preparations for a AAA MEC poll. In the meantime the Committee requests that pilots do not hold back if called by the Wilson Center.
This East JNC and NC Update is posted in What’s New and will be emailed to all pilots.
Item 3. On August 4, the Northwest MEC ratified an agreement with their management that should help Northwest with its crew shortage problems. Recall that NWA cancelled more than 525 flights the last weekend of July in which management blamed pilot absenteeism.
The deal gives pilots 150% pay for those hours over 80 hours a month. A NWA MEC spokesmen said that Northwest pilots gave over $4 billion during the course of their bankruptcy. In contrast, the US Airways pilot’s 6.8 billion worth of investments prompted Doug Parker’s June offer of a 25 percent premium for any block hour flown over 85 hours, and that was in exchange for major contract scheduling relief.
News you can use:
W.A.R. Item 806
FOM 2.8.2 Crews may use certain self-parking systems. A marshaller is not required when using these systems; however, two wingwalkers must be in position.
Educate to Vacate:
Undisputable financial facts: Operating income for the 2nd Q2007
US Airways…………… $320 million dollar Operating Income
America West…………. ($25) million Operating Loss
Equal pay for Equal Work:
For the first 6 months of 2007, the profit sharing allocation shift from US Airways pilots to America West pilots is 3.42 million dollars as Doug Parker continues to punish the group who is making the profits.
Follow the three-prong approach, fly safe and thanks for listening.
Joint Negotiating Committee/US Airways Negotiating Committee Combined Update August 2, 2007
This is the first update on the Joint Negotiating Committee (JNC) process in approximately three months. We will also provide a AAA Negotiating Committee (NC) update on the MEC request for pay parity in this communication.
JNC
The Nicolau Seniority award has obviously had a dramatic impact on the JNC process. Under ALPA merger policy, the seniority award cannot be implemented without the successful ratification of a single Collective Bargaining Agreement. Consequently, East pilots hold the trump card in whether the Nicolau award ever gets implemented. Every pilot we have come in contact with for the last three months has stated that they will vote NO on any agreement brought back from the JNC that is “single†in nature and leads to the immediate or eventual implementation of the Nicolau award.
We have communicated to our West JNC counterparts, management and Officers of this Association that we are currently wasting our time in the JNC process. The West continues to remind us that we have a duty to negotiate a “single†agreement under the Transition Agreement and demands our continued participation as they seek to keep the process moving in a direction that may eventually allow their use of the Nicolau award. We have reminded them that the East will not likely ratify any agreement, separate or otherwise, that does not adequately address our concerns with attrition, the next merger, and a furlough process.
Management, last month, agreed with us that the JNC process was floundering and appeared to be doomed to failure. They floated an idea of “Extended Separate Operations†with pay parity to MEC Chairman Jack Stephan and NC Chairman Doug Mowery. However, they stated that the West would have to agree to the concept. This month management appears to be backing off of last month’s offer and returning to an emphasis on single agreement negotiations. More on that issue in the NC parity update below.
Recall that ALPA’s Executive Council has created the “Rice Committeeâ€, chaired by ALPA First Vice President Paul Rice, to attempt to find “consensual†solutions to the current state of affairs. From initial meetings it is apparent that the Association desires an agreement that achieves as much economics as possible for both groups while somehow protecting the East pilots from the adverse effects of the Nicolau award. Our MEC is on record with supporting a process that would lead to separate operations and separate contracts. We have not seen anything else at this point that offers us more in terms of protections and returns, so during our participation and discussions with the Rice Committee, we will resist any collective bargaining concepts that would lead to accelerating the mechanics of implementation the Nicolau award as we know it. Issues such as a single agreement, separate but similar agreements or separate or joint MECs all have to be fully explored. Any path we decide to explore further must ultimately and adequately address our attrition, furloughs and subsequent transactions as well as provide commensurate returns for our pilots. We will also be leery of any attempts at temporary protections or temporary fixes. But no matter where we end up after all the discussion and exploration, it will be up to each and every line pilot to determine through ratification if we have met your individual threshold for career protections and commensurate returns. We will be meeting again with the Rice Committee on August 13 and 14 in DC as well as the week of August 20 in PHX.
The JNC met in negotiations with management for two days in early July and two days this week. Minimal progress was made on issues minor in nature, in which details are not worth reporting in this update. We can assure you that we are a long way from an agreement at this point in time.
AAA Negotiating Committee Parity Update
At the direction of your MEC the Negotiating Committee transmitted to management a complete request on pay parity in late June. In early July we asked management, in a short face to face meeting during a break in JNC talks, for their answer to our request. It was at this point management mentioned that they wanted the process to reach pay parity to be mutually agreed to by all three parties (East, West and management). We considered the inclusion of the West in this process to be a curious and unnecessary requirement. Our curiosity was answered when the AWA MEC Chairman’s letter to their pilots, dated July 23rd, became public. A direct quote from that letter:
"As mentioned above, when it had come to our attention that the US Airways MEC directed their officers to contact management in order to obtain immediate contractual parity with us, we immediately ensured that management understood that the West pilots would be outraged if the East was granted parity while continuing to hold us hostage over the seniority list."
This week during JNC negotiations with management we asked the West JNC members if the above quote accurately reflected the opinion of the West members of the JNC, the AWA MEC and their pilot group. We were told yes it did. The reason given for this stance was that if the East was going to block their use of the Nicolau award, then they would attempt to block any financial gains for our pilots. But whether or not the West members of the JNC support us in our efforts to achieve parity is of no consequence to our resolve in achieving parity for all US Airways pilots, for even Doug Parker himself acknowledges that “It’s the right thing to do!â€
That same day last week the East NC had a conversation with two management personnel in which we objected to the West holding the East hostage to a “B†scale. We strongly demonstrated that this was an issue between the East and management and the West should have no place in this process of parity. Management’s response was that they did not view the West as having “veto†power on parity for the East. However in the very next sentence they stated that they could not solve our issue without solving some of theirs. We finished by stating that the East pilots would no longer tolerate working on a “B†scale.
Polling
Just recently you have been polled extensively by ALPA National. We have requested an update on when that polling and that information will be made available to our MEC Chairman and MEC at the conclusion of the second phase of polling. Although our unofficial “jumpseating†polls have indicated your strong opinions discussed earlier in this update, we feel that we should conduct our own poll in the very near future in order to be sure that we meet your needs in this unique and dynamic environment. Stand by for that and in the meantime do not hold back anything if you are called by the Wilson Center conducting the ALPA poll or ours. It is very important that we have as much information as possible at our disposal to properly represent you. Your honest and unfettered feedback will be critical in assisting us in bringing your voice to the Rice Committee discussions and in our efforts to obtain parity.
Regards,
USA320Pilot
This is Arnie Gentile with a US Airways MEC update for Monday, August 6th, with three new items.
Item 1. Although the US Airways pilots' frustration with the Nicolau Award is well known throughout our ranks, much of the ALPA community and many other labor unions do not have the details of just how destructive this award is to US Airway’s union pilots. Your MEC has produced a video based on the AAA Merger Committees presentation to ALPA’s Executive Council on May 21, 2007. It features MEC Chairman Jack Stephan and the US Airways MEC Merger Committee and documents for all to see the many inequities of the award. Captain Stephan delivers an overview and each Merger Committee member details the award's components, including the windfall gains received by the America West pilots. It also includes the reading of a letter authored by a former AAA MEC Chairman and actual video clippings from when ALPA President, Captain John Prater, met with the US Airways pilots at ALPA headquarters in Herndon on May 21st. This video, which reinforces our position on the award, will also allow other pilots and union members to understand the precarious situation in which we've found ourselves.
To view the video on your Internet browser, click on the Merger Committee video link that is posted under What's New.
Item 2. The US Airways members of the JNC and the AAA Negotiating Committee have put out a combined update that talks about the pace and the goals of the JNC talks, and how the Nicolau Award has affected discussions with the West MEC.
On this update the Negotiating Committee openly discusses pay parity issues and polling issues including preparations for a AAA MEC poll. In the meantime the Committee requests that pilots do not hold back if called by the Wilson Center.
This East JNC and NC Update is posted in What’s New and will be emailed to all pilots.
Item 3. On August 4, the Northwest MEC ratified an agreement with their management that should help Northwest with its crew shortage problems. Recall that NWA cancelled more than 525 flights the last weekend of July in which management blamed pilot absenteeism.
The deal gives pilots 150% pay for those hours over 80 hours a month. A NWA MEC spokesmen said that Northwest pilots gave over $4 billion during the course of their bankruptcy. In contrast, the US Airways pilot’s 6.8 billion worth of investments prompted Doug Parker’s June offer of a 25 percent premium for any block hour flown over 85 hours, and that was in exchange for major contract scheduling relief.
News you can use:
W.A.R. Item 806
FOM 2.8.2 Crews may use certain self-parking systems. A marshaller is not required when using these systems; however, two wingwalkers must be in position.
Educate to Vacate:
Undisputable financial facts: Operating income for the 2nd Q2007
US Airways…………… $320 million dollar Operating Income
America West…………. ($25) million Operating Loss
Equal pay for Equal Work:
For the first 6 months of 2007, the profit sharing allocation shift from US Airways pilots to America West pilots is 3.42 million dollars as Doug Parker continues to punish the group who is making the profits.
Follow the three-prong approach, fly safe and thanks for listening.
Joint Negotiating Committee/US Airways Negotiating Committee Combined Update August 2, 2007
This is the first update on the Joint Negotiating Committee (JNC) process in approximately three months. We will also provide a AAA Negotiating Committee (NC) update on the MEC request for pay parity in this communication.
JNC
The Nicolau Seniority award has obviously had a dramatic impact on the JNC process. Under ALPA merger policy, the seniority award cannot be implemented without the successful ratification of a single Collective Bargaining Agreement. Consequently, East pilots hold the trump card in whether the Nicolau award ever gets implemented. Every pilot we have come in contact with for the last three months has stated that they will vote NO on any agreement brought back from the JNC that is “single†in nature and leads to the immediate or eventual implementation of the Nicolau award.
We have communicated to our West JNC counterparts, management and Officers of this Association that we are currently wasting our time in the JNC process. The West continues to remind us that we have a duty to negotiate a “single†agreement under the Transition Agreement and demands our continued participation as they seek to keep the process moving in a direction that may eventually allow their use of the Nicolau award. We have reminded them that the East will not likely ratify any agreement, separate or otherwise, that does not adequately address our concerns with attrition, the next merger, and a furlough process.
Management, last month, agreed with us that the JNC process was floundering and appeared to be doomed to failure. They floated an idea of “Extended Separate Operations†with pay parity to MEC Chairman Jack Stephan and NC Chairman Doug Mowery. However, they stated that the West would have to agree to the concept. This month management appears to be backing off of last month’s offer and returning to an emphasis on single agreement negotiations. More on that issue in the NC parity update below.
Recall that ALPA’s Executive Council has created the “Rice Committeeâ€, chaired by ALPA First Vice President Paul Rice, to attempt to find “consensual†solutions to the current state of affairs. From initial meetings it is apparent that the Association desires an agreement that achieves as much economics as possible for both groups while somehow protecting the East pilots from the adverse effects of the Nicolau award. Our MEC is on record with supporting a process that would lead to separate operations and separate contracts. We have not seen anything else at this point that offers us more in terms of protections and returns, so during our participation and discussions with the Rice Committee, we will resist any collective bargaining concepts that would lead to accelerating the mechanics of implementation the Nicolau award as we know it. Issues such as a single agreement, separate but similar agreements or separate or joint MECs all have to be fully explored. Any path we decide to explore further must ultimately and adequately address our attrition, furloughs and subsequent transactions as well as provide commensurate returns for our pilots. We will also be leery of any attempts at temporary protections or temporary fixes. But no matter where we end up after all the discussion and exploration, it will be up to each and every line pilot to determine through ratification if we have met your individual threshold for career protections and commensurate returns. We will be meeting again with the Rice Committee on August 13 and 14 in DC as well as the week of August 20 in PHX.
The JNC met in negotiations with management for two days in early July and two days this week. Minimal progress was made on issues minor in nature, in which details are not worth reporting in this update. We can assure you that we are a long way from an agreement at this point in time.
AAA Negotiating Committee Parity Update
At the direction of your MEC the Negotiating Committee transmitted to management a complete request on pay parity in late June. In early July we asked management, in a short face to face meeting during a break in JNC talks, for their answer to our request. It was at this point management mentioned that they wanted the process to reach pay parity to be mutually agreed to by all three parties (East, West and management). We considered the inclusion of the West in this process to be a curious and unnecessary requirement. Our curiosity was answered when the AWA MEC Chairman’s letter to their pilots, dated July 23rd, became public. A direct quote from that letter:
"As mentioned above, when it had come to our attention that the US Airways MEC directed their officers to contact management in order to obtain immediate contractual parity with us, we immediately ensured that management understood that the West pilots would be outraged if the East was granted parity while continuing to hold us hostage over the seniority list."
This week during JNC negotiations with management we asked the West JNC members if the above quote accurately reflected the opinion of the West members of the JNC, the AWA MEC and their pilot group. We were told yes it did. The reason given for this stance was that if the East was going to block their use of the Nicolau award, then they would attempt to block any financial gains for our pilots. But whether or not the West members of the JNC support us in our efforts to achieve parity is of no consequence to our resolve in achieving parity for all US Airways pilots, for even Doug Parker himself acknowledges that “It’s the right thing to do!â€
That same day last week the East NC had a conversation with two management personnel in which we objected to the West holding the East hostage to a “B†scale. We strongly demonstrated that this was an issue between the East and management and the West should have no place in this process of parity. Management’s response was that they did not view the West as having “veto†power on parity for the East. However in the very next sentence they stated that they could not solve our issue without solving some of theirs. We finished by stating that the East pilots would no longer tolerate working on a “B†scale.
Polling
Just recently you have been polled extensively by ALPA National. We have requested an update on when that polling and that information will be made available to our MEC Chairman and MEC at the conclusion of the second phase of polling. Although our unofficial “jumpseating†polls have indicated your strong opinions discussed earlier in this update, we feel that we should conduct our own poll in the very near future in order to be sure that we meet your needs in this unique and dynamic environment. Stand by for that and in the meantime do not hold back anything if you are called by the Wilson Center conducting the ALPA poll or ours. It is very important that we have as much information as possible at our disposal to properly represent you. Your honest and unfettered feedback will be critical in assisting us in bringing your voice to the Rice Committee discussions and in our efforts to obtain parity.
Regards,
USA320Pilot