Weekly report 9-30-09

General Information

Several reports have come out declaring the recession over. I know we are not feeling it individually but this bodes well for us moving forward. The reason I say this is that airlines generally tend to lag any recovery by about six months. In addition several financial analysts have recently upgraded the Company's stock. This at least gives some hope of a return to profits for the industry in general and the Company in specific. This matters because as the saying goes; you can't get blood from a stone. At this time I know we are feeling like that stone. "The concession stand is closed" is a phrase I've heard loud and clear. As I write this I'm in San Francisco for continued negotiations with the Company and these reports lend strength to the Union's position. Like you I've had enough, and look forward to a strong agreement with wages and work rules that reflect our importance to the Company.

I recently saw an e-mail from a member from another city bemoaning the fact that the Airline Division is hiring pilots and not mechanics for staff positions. The email prattles on about no mechanics being on the negotiating committee. Most of the committee is comprised of mechanics, thirteen from United, but there is no sense using facts if it doesn't advance your argument I guess. I'm all in favor of taking the leadership to task on issues that matter, but does this qualify as an actual problem? Most of these new officers are former ALPA Reps and I've been impressed with ALPA's success for some time. In fact thinking about this, I can't really understand why this member has a problem with this. If they find a mechanic that excels at representational issues I hope they hire them, but I don't believe they should hire someone just because they are a mechanic. To operate in this manner would be opposite of what anyone with a modicum of common sense would do. As we've seen a lack of common sense and shooting from the hip has never served us well.

There will be limited reporting over the next couple of weeks as I will be out of the office for the most part with negotiations first in San Fran and then in DC next week. If I see or hear of anything interesting I'll post it to the blog.

MM

There were several issues worked on over the last week. The biggest was the shakedown because of the loss of several afternoon shift spots. I went over this with the Company for the shift bidding process. There were a couple of problems with ESS and a couple of member mistakes that were resolved. Most seem to understand the process but for those that have questions the Company looks at your first choice for shift placement and if you can't hold that they go to your second choice and if you can't hold that they go to your third choice and so on until they get to a choice you can hold by seniority. There was a question about posting these positions for five days prior to awarding them. The five day provision is for notification under Article VI H., of the current CBA. This provision states that you be afforded 5 days notice prior to your starting or stopping times are involuntarily changed. This provision does not force the Company to notify you that they are contemplating realignment. That is why it is imperative to keep your bids up to date, because while they do notify us many times, there is no guarantee of prior notice.

A second step grievance for discipline for a very minor delay was held last Tuesday. The hearing went very well for the Union. If the Company denies this grievance the Committee will appeal the decision to the third step. One thing that came up during the hearing is communication between mechanics. We have to watch over each other when working together or the Company could find an opening to discipline and they will do just that as evidenced in the hearing.

There are still several outstanding second steps that I am waiting on. I've been given answers verbally that several were sustained, but I'm still waiting for the written decisions. I am trying to work out a deal on the choice of physician third step and will speak further to LR on this grievance this week in San Francisco.

A committee grievance was filed on behalf of the class of mechanics that the Company is denying the right to exercise their seniority. They are doing this based on qualifications and as I've informed them this is against Article X of the Agreement. The Company's position is that the FAR's trump the CBA. Unfortunately for the Company nowhere in the FAR's are mechanics constrained to midnight shift for the purpose of receiving the appropriate training to bring their A&P's current.

GQ

Greg Pinelli is the acting manager in the shop. I've been working with Greg on an older grievance for dependability. In addition today the Local IAM committee informed me that one of their members was performing shop work in the form of painting some equipment with zone demarcations. I informed Greg this is our work and Greg agreed to ensure a stop practice on this and we will discuss it further when I return from the negotiations in DC.

PV

Steve Loughman left the position as manager for a promotion in Chicago. Before he left he gave me all the outstanding grievance answers that I was waiting on except one. He could not find the grievance for the Jetway outsourcing but he did inform the incoming manager that this was an open issue that had been filed in a timely manner.

The three answers I received will be processed to third step as they are all Article II scope violations.

That's all for this week,
Bob

A little help?

Hey everyone. I found this via twitter, and would like to ask that you help these former ABX pilots get their severance pay. DHL is still holding the funds that were promised to these pilots and you can read all about it on their website.

When we were lobbying in DC regarding the outsourcing issue these guys were right there with us. I witnessed their impassioned pleas for reform on our behalf and would like us to return the favor. So please take a couple of seconds to send the e-letter to the DHL Directors via the pilot's website.

Thank you,

Bob

Analysts’ opinions

Reading recent news about the Company I came across some interesting opinions.

Here is an interesting review from JP Morgan about the Company's finances moving forward. You will have to scroll down to the bottom of the page to read the post from September 10^th.

Here is a less rosy report from Seeking Alpha.

And finally onto rumors; I found this on the UAUA message board. I don't know which analyst reported this and therefore cannot verify its accuracy but this appears to be in line with what we've all been assuming. As the post itself says take this with a grain of salt:

"An Analyst's Opinion"
19-Sep-09 11:48 am

Take it with a grain of salt - United Airlines Although we believe United is one of the financially weakest airlines, we think it is the most likely takeover candidate among the legacy carriers, with Continental as the possible acquirer. We think the two firms create a natural link between their networks, with each carrier strengthening the geographic reach where the other is weak. For example, United would give Continental its much-needed exposure in the western United States (via Denver and San Francisco) and Continental's Newark, N.J., hub gives United an important East Coast exposure. On the international front, United's strong Chinese presence would round out the global network between the firms, making the firm a strong global player

UPDATE. The analyst was identified in a followup post, "This piece was written by Basili Alukos, CPA ." Here is a link to his report. The post from above is copied from page 3 of the report at the bottom of the page.

Weekly report 9-18-09

General Items

I'm flying home from San Francisco where negotiations were held as I write this report. The official update can be found here. This was a productive session in my opinion.

It has been almost three weeks since the last weekly report and there has been much activity in that time.

We have all received letters from the CDU asking for support to change collective bargaining agents. I have posted my views on this issue on the blog here and here. It is incredible to me that these former leaders believe a continual change of unions is the answer to our problems.

In addition to the above paragraph there were a couple of incidents that led me to believe there may be a misunderstanding of what the Union can achieve on behalf of the membership. The biggest item was an assault on a mechanic by employees from another work group. This is an example of an item that needs to be addressed outside of the collective bargaining agreement. A grievance could be filed for the Company not providing a safe work environment and that should be sustained, but what would this truly achieve for the member? When this type of issue occurs it is a matter for the police and attorneys. There is a Teamster Privilege Legal service that can help find an attorney when needed for many different legal concerns including issues such as this. When you call you will need to provide your Locals number. If the mechanic involved buried a wrench in the skull of the perpetrators that is where the Union would step in to defend against any kind of discipline on the Company's part. I've talked to the Company about this since this is probably going to be an ongoing problem and I don't want to see our members disciplined for any defensive actions that may be taken. As I've reported previously several young employees for UAX are taking the whole "you are responsible for security and following the rules thing" to extremes. The office did work on this but not to the satisfaction of the member who informed me that I was a wimp for not achieving satisfaction on his part. In short the union is responsible for negotiating and the administration of the Agreement. We will try to help with many things, but anything outside the Agreement will be met with different levels of success depending on the issue.

The next thing needing addressed is our responsibility to each other. We are members of a very strong Labor Organization and while that is a very good thing we undermine each other when we turn in members to management, when we make deals that short change others, and generally work in a manner that ignores the CBA in order to make life easier in the short term. These actions lead to a weaker group and that leads to less influence when dealing with the Company. All I ask is that you please consider when you are dealing with the Company; how could this action affect everyone else? I've been telling the Company for a long time that their actions toward us affect their bottom line. In a way the same is true for us in dealing with them. Solidarity is more than just a word, and with it comes the political capital that can be used to achieve our goals. Those of us that were stationed at Dulles in the early and mid 90's saw firsthand what solidarity can achieve.

The health care debate continues and is intensifying. One member asked that I stop advocating my "socialistic" position on this. First if a government run insurance plan is "socialistic" then we should be advocating the elimination of Medicare. And second if I did not feel strongly that a comprehensive overhaul of the system would help us all, I would stop. However as many of you know two of my sons have special needs and I have seen firsthand that a government run health insurance plan can and does work. My sons have never been denied service or payment for such service. To illustrate a point on where our costs are headed if this system is not reformed here is an interesting article.

MM

The Cabin Crew ten hour schedule has only been approved for San Francisco and Chicago to this point. To say that I am frustrated with the Company is an understatement. To start with we were told they would give it a try and then the next day called and said all fifteen of us in the room were mistaken they really didn't say that. Then on the one hand we were told this is low skilled work that should be sent to the vendors (which it had been previously and continues to be to a degree), and then we are told that the Company is close to last in the industry in all measurable parameters dealing with the cabin. So the bottom line is their vendors were not delivering a quality product, they brought us back in to fix their problem, and then they jerk the crew around responsible for accomplishing this task. When the Manager responsible for vending this work spoke about this, within a matter of five minutes he projected both positions and I was truly astonished at his lack of understanding of the problem before us. If they want to vend this work out and remain in last place then they need to continue with their previous course of action. If they really want a quality product, then have us do the work and reward us for fixing their screw up by taking into account our quality of life. This is just another example of how the Company's actions negatively affect the bottom line.

A second step grievance in regards to discipline will be heard next week on my return.

I was told upon my return that thirty positions will now be opening on afternoon shift for the eight hour schedule. This is due to the elimination of close to half of the people from the ten hour schedule. The explanation I was given is that the Company needed to reduce overtime and there were two ways to accomplish this. The first option would be to bring in fifteen more bodies or the second option was a reallocation of manpower. Given the current state of the airline the Company chose reallocation, as there is the possibility of layoffs over the next quarter if finances do not improve. As I've stated previously there is no longer any ten hour shift protection language in the Agreement so the Company is within its right to take this action. I will meet with Ron and Stuart on Monday to discuss the process.

The vacation rules poll is over. The turnout was extremely low as it did not reach 25% of the total membership. The vote was evenly split in all areas. There was some feedback left in regards to what everyone would like to see for next year's rules and some of those cannot be implemented due to a conflict with the CBA, but there were also some very good ideas. Outside of the poll if you have any ideas for vacation rules this year please see Tony Urso, Jay Koreny, or Ken Mitchell as they are the vacation rules committee. If you have some feedback on the ballotbin system I would like to hear it. I was hoping this would be a good way to poll the membership but if it's too difficult I will discontinue its use.

GQ

A question was asked by management in OZ as to whether the shop would be moved to the point system for sick leave discipline as had the Ramp. The answer is no. For those that don't know the IAM agreed to a points system for sick leave instead of the non punitive level system. This agreement only affects members of the Machinists Union. I addressed this system earlier on the blog.

PV

There are several small issues from the afternoon shift that are currently being addressed. These deal with pay when out sick, pay for getting badged, and some personal issues.

There are several outsourcing grievances that are still outstanding. There is one grievance outstanding regarding qualifications.

If you have ideas for vacation rules please see Bruce Wade, John Jenkins, or Brian Jensen as they are the vacation rules committee.

That's all for this week,
Bob

Democracy Drives Effective Unions

This is the headline from the CDU "newsletter" received by many of us recently. The previous blog post dealt with some of the items contained in the latest issue so I will not go deep into it again.

I bring this subject up again because of an e-mail I received this morning as well as several phone calls.

First I would like to share the e-mail and here is a link to the copy. The document speaks for itself but I felt it was relevant because it speaks to the heart of Union democracy. A quick overview is that District Lodge 141 of the IAM agreed to several things without a membership vote. The largest issue is a complete revamp of sick leave policy and discipline surrounding its use. The District has agreed to change over from the old non punitive system, like the one we use, to a point system to make it easier to discharge members. The dependability issue has a long history with many problems, which require change, but should this be done with no member input or buyoff? Is this the democracy the CDU is pushing?

Second I would like to address the phone calls I have received. Since details of this have leaked to the Ramp membership they are calling our office requesting Teamster authorization cards because they feel they continue to be sold out. This was a big surprise to me as many Ramp people have expressed interest in signing IBT cards; however it is usually lighthearted with no real concern on their part. The calls I'm getting now are full of desperation and exasperation. Is this maybe the change the CDU is pushing us toward?

For my part, respectfully, I have to say no thank you.

Bob

 

Liars or Fools?

I read with astonishment the August 2009 Issue number 1 from the Committee for a Democratic Union. This is the group of mostly ex AMFA Local Nine officers seeking to toss out the IBT and replace them with the IAM.

"Not at a single Teamster top official representing us is elected by UAL mechanics."
This statement is from the opening paragraph of the newsletter. I'm sure you all remember these same statements in regards to John Peterpaul, Tom Buffenbarger, or Robert Roach. Now however after leading us into an abyss that we may never recover from, these guys have found religion. Now that the IAM has seen a grassroots movement to replace elected officers in District 141 and 143 all is well. This is from the Q&A section of the newsletter. The truth is it took these guys more than six years after removing the IAM to come to the realization that they could vote on their representatives. In addition they had to be schooled on the process by those oft maligned "unskilled" ramp and customer service employees.

 

"The IAM promised, in writing, that we can set up our own locals and district complete with a new set of bylaws." This was also from the Q&A section. I'm not sure whether to laugh or cry. Are they serious? First this idea was tried but found wanting by the membership because of these guys continually dismissing it as AMFA-lite. Second this written promise will last for a year at the outside if ever implemented. Do these guys not understand the finances behind separate Locals and Districts or are they lying to you to promote themselves? The IAM has had a precipitous loss in membership and that leads to consolidation to preserve resources. This is Union Finance 101. It would be wildly irresponsible to do business in a different manner. You the membership deserve quality representation. The ugly truth of that is this comes at a cost. There is no "free lunch".

 

Moving on, "As most long-time union workers at United Airlines know, contract negotiations usually extend from one to two years after
the amendable date. The items of greatest interest to members on the floor pay and benefits,
don't usually get settled until the very end of the negotiations. The current contract does not become
amendable until December 31, 2009. A change of unions during
2010 will not materially disrupt negotiations. The lAM already represents several groups at UAL including ramp, stores,
maintenance instructors and public contact employees. It can
smoothly transition into the bargaining agent for the mechanics and related." These guys know, or should know, that all language matters and a serious card drive will materially disrupt negotiations. A smooth transition is near impossible as new Reps will need to be installed and trained. That is unless we have the IAM Air Transport Department finish up the negotiations and have President Buffenbarger accept an agreement for us without a vote as is his right under the IAM Constitution. Do you remember that little item? I sure do as these guys beat the IAM Reps with this constantly. The only thing they got right in this passage is the general amount of time it takes to negotiate an agreement under the RLA and the amendable date.

 

Do you think we will be embraced when we come back? Even IAM Officers were denied honorary withdrawal cards when we left. If you can find one, ask an old Eastern Shuttle mechanic how this works. The Shuttle Mechanics had to go to Federal Court to sue for their seniority rights to be enforced after returning from AMFA. This was because the IAM decided these rights were not valid even though they were clearly spelled out in the CBA.

 

"There have been visible signs of the advantages of being in the Machinists Union…" This is also from the question and answer section. These are the very same guys that proclaimed the "Fighting Machinists" a joke during the 2003 campaign. What I have to ask is, were they misinformed (fools) or lying to you then? If the answer is yes to either, why should they warrant the time of day now?

 

That's all for now,

Bob

 

 

 

 

 

Please support Amerijet Pilots

Amerijet Video to be Watched and Shared with Others

David Bourne, Teamsters Airline Division Director, asked that the following link be sent to all Airline Division members and locals, as well as all other Teamster divisions and locals, with the request that members send it to everyone they know, especially U.S. Congressmen and Senators.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hZFMLh_tZtM