US Airways pilots face negotiating turbulence
2 from bargaining committee resign after 2 removed
TED REED
Staff Writer
The negotiating committee for US Airways' pilots is in turmoil.
Two of the group's four negotiators resigned this week after two others were removed by union leaders during an April 9 meeting. The four, all experienced negotiators, were perceived by some union leaders as being too conciliatory.
Three replacements, new to labor negotiations but considered by some to be tougher on the airline, were appointed.
The changes come as US Airways prepares to enter a critical round of negotiations aimed at securing further labor concessions that would enable it to compete with lower-cost rivals. Talks with the pilots, the highest-paid workers, are key to the airline's survival.
Bill Pollock, chairman of the US Airways chapter of the Air Line Pilots Association, said the changes in the negotiating committee follow a shakeup in the executive council, an elected group that oversees the negotiators.
Ten of the 12 executive council members were elected in the past two years. Some of those new members wanted new negotiators, he said.
"Their biggest problem was a perception that they were too conciliatory," Pollock said. "They weren't conciliatory, but because of the challenges faced by the industry, we've been on a retreat from what were good pay and working conditions."
US Airways pilots already have made major concessions in their salaries and benefits in the past two years. The annual salary for a captain on a Boeing 737, the most common plane in US Airways' fleet, has fallen to about $150,000 from about $180,000. And because of cuts in the number of airplanes, many captains have become first officers, making $100,000 annually. The airline also eliminated the pilots' defined benefit pension plan, replacing it with a defined contribution plan.
The changes in the negotiating committee are being opposed by a group of Philadelphia pilots. They want to recall their executive council representatives who backed the replacements.
Larry Thomas, a Philadelphia-based pilot leading the recall effort, said veteran negotiators should not be replaced by negotiators with no experience.
"Negotiators are not born; they are trained," Thomas said. "It takes years to become a capable, qualified negotiator.
"We are in the process of restructuring," he said. "To put folks on the committee that do not have experience, especially at this level, is risky."
Philadelphia-based pilot Peter Gauthier, a former chairman of the US Airways pilots union, said he sees a "grass roots rebellion" under way in Philadelphia by members who want to restore the old negotiating committee.
"Pilots are not happy with the management of this airline, but we like our jobs and we want our jobs protected," Gauthier said. "It appears the decisions being made ... are not consistent with that goal."
US Airways is losing money despite cutting annual expenses by $1.9 billion during nine months in bankruptcy court. Labor concessions accounted for $1 billion of that total.
Now, the airline wants $1.5 billion more in cuts. Pilots accounted for about $550 million of the earlier concessions and will be asked to take the lead in a new round of talks, expected to be completed this summer.
In those talks, the airline is expected to focus on work-rule changes that would allow pilots to fly more hours each month.
Federal regulations allow pilots to fly 1,000 hours annually. US Airways pilots average about 50 hours at the controls each month -- or about 600 hours a year. But pilots spend many more hours on duty and away from home.
In an Internet broadcast last month, US Airways chief executive David Siegel told workers that the airline is fighting for its life.
He said the airline must quickly slash costs by 25 percent because revenues will fall dramatically when low-fare king Southwest Airlines begins flying to US Airways' Philadelphia hub May 9. US Airways also has hubs in Pittsburgh and Charlotte, where it employs 5,736 people.
At the April 9 meeting, union leaders removed two negotiators by using a "roll call" vote instead of the one-person-one-vote system usually used. In a roll call vote, union leaders representing the biggest US Airways bases get the most votes.
That allowed the Philadelphia and Pittsburgh bases to join forces and dominate. US Airways has about 1,200 pilots based in Philadelphia, 1,000 in Charlotte, 700 in Pittsburgh, 300 in Washington and 100 each in Boston and New York.
At that meeting, top officials of the national union warned against changing the negotiating committee as it prepares to begin talks that will determine the airline's future. But the warning went unheeded.
Cuts for Pilots
US Airways pilots have seen many cuts since 2001.
Salary: Average pilot earns about 35 percent less. Actual cuts vary widely.
Furloughs: More than 1,800 pilots lost their jobs.
Pensions: Now pegged at 50 percent of earnings, down from 65 percent.
Hours: New scheduling rules, aimed at increasing flying, were to be phased in.
Health care: For some, payments rose 40 percent.
Vacations: Decreased by several days annually.
Source: ALPA
2 from bargaining committee resign after 2 removed
TED REED
Staff Writer
The negotiating committee for US Airways' pilots is in turmoil.
Two of the group's four negotiators resigned this week after two others were removed by union leaders during an April 9 meeting. The four, all experienced negotiators, were perceived by some union leaders as being too conciliatory.
Three replacements, new to labor negotiations but considered by some to be tougher on the airline, were appointed.
The changes come as US Airways prepares to enter a critical round of negotiations aimed at securing further labor concessions that would enable it to compete with lower-cost rivals. Talks with the pilots, the highest-paid workers, are key to the airline's survival.
Bill Pollock, chairman of the US Airways chapter of the Air Line Pilots Association, said the changes in the negotiating committee follow a shakeup in the executive council, an elected group that oversees the negotiators.
Ten of the 12 executive council members were elected in the past two years. Some of those new members wanted new negotiators, he said.
"Their biggest problem was a perception that they were too conciliatory," Pollock said. "They weren't conciliatory, but because of the challenges faced by the industry, we've been on a retreat from what were good pay and working conditions."
US Airways pilots already have made major concessions in their salaries and benefits in the past two years. The annual salary for a captain on a Boeing 737, the most common plane in US Airways' fleet, has fallen to about $150,000 from about $180,000. And because of cuts in the number of airplanes, many captains have become first officers, making $100,000 annually. The airline also eliminated the pilots' defined benefit pension plan, replacing it with a defined contribution plan.
The changes in the negotiating committee are being opposed by a group of Philadelphia pilots. They want to recall their executive council representatives who backed the replacements.
Larry Thomas, a Philadelphia-based pilot leading the recall effort, said veteran negotiators should not be replaced by negotiators with no experience.
"Negotiators are not born; they are trained," Thomas said. "It takes years to become a capable, qualified negotiator.
"We are in the process of restructuring," he said. "To put folks on the committee that do not have experience, especially at this level, is risky."
Philadelphia-based pilot Peter Gauthier, a former chairman of the US Airways pilots union, said he sees a "grass roots rebellion" under way in Philadelphia by members who want to restore the old negotiating committee.
"Pilots are not happy with the management of this airline, but we like our jobs and we want our jobs protected," Gauthier said. "It appears the decisions being made ... are not consistent with that goal."
US Airways is losing money despite cutting annual expenses by $1.9 billion during nine months in bankruptcy court. Labor concessions accounted for $1 billion of that total.
Now, the airline wants $1.5 billion more in cuts. Pilots accounted for about $550 million of the earlier concessions and will be asked to take the lead in a new round of talks, expected to be completed this summer.
In those talks, the airline is expected to focus on work-rule changes that would allow pilots to fly more hours each month.
Federal regulations allow pilots to fly 1,000 hours annually. US Airways pilots average about 50 hours at the controls each month -- or about 600 hours a year. But pilots spend many more hours on duty and away from home.
In an Internet broadcast last month, US Airways chief executive David Siegel told workers that the airline is fighting for its life.
He said the airline must quickly slash costs by 25 percent because revenues will fall dramatically when low-fare king Southwest Airlines begins flying to US Airways' Philadelphia hub May 9. US Airways also has hubs in Pittsburgh and Charlotte, where it employs 5,736 people.
At the April 9 meeting, union leaders removed two negotiators by using a "roll call" vote instead of the one-person-one-vote system usually used. In a roll call vote, union leaders representing the biggest US Airways bases get the most votes.
That allowed the Philadelphia and Pittsburgh bases to join forces and dominate. US Airways has about 1,200 pilots based in Philadelphia, 1,000 in Charlotte, 700 in Pittsburgh, 300 in Washington and 100 each in Boston and New York.
At that meeting, top officials of the national union warned against changing the negotiating committee as it prepares to begin talks that will determine the airline's future. But the warning went unheeded.
Cuts for Pilots
US Airways pilots have seen many cuts since 2001.
Salary: Average pilot earns about 35 percent less. Actual cuts vary widely.
Furloughs: More than 1,800 pilots lost their jobs.
Pensions: Now pegged at 50 percent of earnings, down from 65 percent.
Hours: New scheduling rules, aimed at increasing flying, were to be phased in.
Health care: For some, payments rose 40 percent.
Vacations: Decreased by several days annually.
Source: ALPA
