US Airways East ALPA MEC Conference Call Update

[USA320Pilot]

MEC Conference Call Update - May 14, 2007

During a conference call meeting today, the MEC heard a report from the Merger Committee and Merger Counsel about their efforts to prepare for the upcoming ALPA Executive Council meeting scheduled for May 21st at the Association's Herndon offices. The MEC members offered their input into the process during the call.

As directed by the MEC at its meeting on Sunday and Monday, May 6 and 7, the Merger Committee and Merger Counsel are working diligently to develop a presentation for the ALPA Executive Council showing that the Nicolau Award is not "fair and equitable," that it is riddled with inconsistencies and anomalies, and that it conflicts with the goal of ALPA Merger Policy to "[a]void windfalls to either group at the expense of the other." Accordingly, the Merger Committee and Merger Counsel will request that the ALPA Executive Council invalidate and strike down the Nicolau award and send the case to a new arbitrator based on non-compliance with ALPA merger policy.

Specifically, the Merger Committee's presentation demonstrates that the Nicolau Award places US Airways pilots with 16 years of service and no furlough time junior to America West new hires who were still in ground school at the time of the announcement of the merger. The Award deprives the US Airways pilots of the attrition-based promotional opportunities that they would have enjoyed absent the merger and gives those promotions instead to junior America West pilots, who will then block forever the access to those positions because of their younger ages. The Merger Committee's presentation also shows that the ALPA Executive Council has the jurisdiction and authority to deal with the problems created by the Award.

 

[Phoenix]

MEC Conference Call Update - May 14, 2007

During a conference call meeting today, the MEC..

Somehow as I read the title to the thread I knew who the poster was before I looked.

 

[EastUS]

Somehow as I read the title to the thread I knew who the poster was before I looked.

Alpo won't do squat. Understand..and fully "Get" that the Alpo crowd aren't actual pilots..they're self serving politicians calling themselves "Captains". All those jagoffs are trying to do is see if this will blow over. I've just read the latest letter from the prime slug in Alpo offering up the standard BS..it sounded exactly like: (insert scene from Blazing Saddles..."Harrumph!..This is serious gentlemen!..WE've got to protect our phoney-baloney jobs!!" These tools have had their chances for YEARS..and done NOTHING of value.

Alpo must GO!!

Decertify Now!!

 

[oldcrow]

Alpo must GO!!

Decertify Now!!

And you will still have the RC4 and the GAG !

 

[EastUS]

And you will still have the RC4 and the GAG !

Umm..So what's your point? Leave 'em in to "negotiate" more of the same? I think not.

 

[oldcrow]

Point is you will still have the same ones that are there now. ALPA may be gone but the leadership of the new union will not change much, that you can count on. Maybe a couple of names will change but the spirit of the RC4 and the GAG will surely be there.

 

[EastUS]

"ALPA may be gone but the leadership of the new union will not change much, that you can count on. Maybe a couple of names will change but the spirit of the RC4 and the GAG will surely be there."


Could be..but we disagree in that at least the current crop that did all this will no longer benefit from a life of leisure (Alpo "vacations"/luxury hotel conferences/never flying the line/excessive pay for..umm..What?/etc) excess at our expense.

It's a cruel world..and what small sum of Justice that may be achieved is yet a glorious thing. I can think of no finer tribute to their noble efforts than to put them back on line flying, into the enviornment they so disdainfully created..naturally I only mean those that have yet to wriggle under the flagstones into some Alpo Nat'l niche

In any case?=It cannot reasonbly get ANY worse

 

[USFlyer]

MEC Conference Call Update - May 14, 2007

The Award deprives the US Airways pilots of the attrition-based promotional opportunities that they would have enjoyed absent the merger ...

Huh? You were going to be on the street in a few months had the merger not happened. Plus, your union agreed to binding arbitration. I can't really see a legal way out of this mess that your union created for itself.

 

[allstrike]

Huh? You were going to be on the street in a few months had the merger not happened. Plus, your union agreed to binding arbitration. I can't really see a legal way out of this mess that your union created for itself.

Hey he may not get out of it.Although he may see some satisfaction in having the ALPA guys join him in his misery.

Hummm,I like that.I wonder how many IAM chairmen would like to come back to the floor,and enjoy what they have created.

 

[USA320Pilot]

The US Airways MEC agreed to the literal intent of ALPA's Merger Policy. The Nicolau Award clearly violates the Policy becuase it created a windfall for one pilot group at the expense of another and it did not minimize changes to career expectations.

Furthermore, without some sort of settlement or compromise between the parties the East pilots have the right and leverage to tie this up for nearly a decade.

As the Communications Committee indicated, "Accordingly, the Merger Committee and Merger Counsel will request that the ALPA Executive Council invalidate and strike down the Nicolau award and send the case to a new arbitrator based on non-compliance with ALPA merger policy." If not, as MEC Chairman Jack Stephan said there will be "dire consequences".

Regards,

USA320Pilot

 

[Bear96]

The US Airways MEC agreed to the literal intent of ALPA's Merger Policy. The Nicolau Award clearly violates the Policy becuase it created a windfall for one pilot group at the expense of another and it did not minimize changes to career expectations.

Wouldn't a decision based on DOH create a "windfall" for the East group, and therefore be just as invalid by your reasoning (if not moreso, since DOH is not one of the enumerated factors in the merger policy)?

 

[CV580ETOPS]

The US Airways MEC agreed to the literal intent of ALPA's Merger Policy. The Nicolau Award clearly violates the Policy becuase it created a windfall for one pilot group at the expense of another and it did not minimize changes to career expectations.

Furthermore, without some sort of settlement or compromise between the parties the East pilots have the right and leverage to tie this up for nearly a decade.

As the Communications Committee indicated, "Accordingly, the Merger Committee and Merger Counsel will request that the ALPA Executive Council invalidate and strike down the Nicolau award and send the case to a new arbitrator based on non-compliance with ALPA merger policy." If not, as MEC Chairman Jack Stephan said there will be "dire consequences".

Regards,

USA320Pilot

Hmmmm..."Dire consequences". Threats from old men with limp "deeks". Ya gotta just laugh,shake your head and wonder what makes these people tick. "Dire consequences" .I feel like I'm on the setof "The Sopranos"
And that's an insult to the actor's who are on that show.

 

[767jetz]

and it did not minimize changes to career expectations.

Furthermore, without some sort of settlement or compromise between the parties the East pilots have the right and leverage to tie this up for nearly a decade.

So in other words, you "expected" to receive a windfall by unreasonably holding on to DOH demands, when you merger committee advised otherwise, and while you still had an opportunity to negotiate something reasonable.

You continue to not accept responsibility for the fact that any perceived loss of career expectation is the result of a failure on the part of the East MEC. Anyone can clearly see that. You can't claim that ALPA merger policy was not followed when you were the ones disrupting the process by not negotiating in good faith in the first place.

I think you know very well that ALPA will never overturn this award or find that the merger policy violated. I also know you are just jumping through hoops in the process while you try to justify your feeble attempts to force another outcome. Furthermore, you lack the support of other ALPA members and even many within your own ranks who place the blame squarely at the feet of your MEC and the GAG. (no matter how much you try to show a unified front.)

Quite frankly your whole "give us what we want or we will burn the place down or, force our will on you" attitude is a disgrace and drips with a lack of integrity. It's a bunch of empty threats, and no one will negotiate with a bunch of "corporate terrorist" like yourselves.

When would now be a good time to accept reality and work at achieving a joint contract that you can be proud of, rather than tossing threats at everyone else?

 

[Phoenix]

So in other words, you "expected" to receive a windfall by unreasonably holding on to DOH demands...

... loss of career expectation is the result of a failure on the part of the East MEC.

...you were the ones disrupting the process by not negotiating in good faith in the first place.

... Furthermore, you lack the support of other ALPA members and even many within your own ranks who place the blame squarely at the feet of your MEC ..

This tired and repeated argument about how the USAir MEC is responsible for creating an unjust award is bunk.

The arbitrator is responsible to come to a just award without partiality, regardless of how vigorous an argument is presented by either side. If the arbitrator penalized one side for being “big talkersâ€￾ in their argument and rewarded the other side that was ostensibly less, then by definition the arbitrator failed to rule without partiality and failed to present a just award based on merger policy as it must be applied to the circumstances of the seniority lists, apart from the arguments on either side.

You can’t have it both ways. Either the arbitrator decided without partiality, or he slapped the USAir MEC for being stupid.

 

[nycbusdriver]

...The arbitrator is responsible to come to a just award without partiality, regardless of how vigorous an argument is presented by either side. If the arbitrator penalized one side for being “big talkersâ€￾ in their argument and rewarded the other side that was ostensibly less, then by definition the arbitrator failed to rule without partiality and failed to present a just award based on merger policy as it must be applied to the circumstances of the seniority lists, apart from the arguments on either side.

You can’t have it both ways. Either the arbitrator decided without partiality, or he slapped the USAir MEC for being stupid.

I think it is obvious that the arbitrator had an attitude problem by his own words telling both sides to go back, re-evaluate their arguments and "get real" (I believe those were his words) before he went into hiding to come up with his "award."

Why would he say something like this? He revealed at THAT point that he was prejudiced against an argument made by at least one side, or both. What would make it necessary for an arbitrator to tell the teams to reevaluate their cases? He could have easily reached a decision (good or bad) from the information that had been presented up to that point. Those comments, in my mind, are a smoking gun that demonstrates Nicolau's inability from that point on to reach a fair agreement.