Joint Board of Adjustment

Tomorrow the first Board will convene in San Francisco. We are scheduled to hear five third steps in this session. I know five doesn't sound like a huge number, but consider this; this will be more than double the monthly hearings currently completed by the Company. Even still this Board has its work cut out for it with an estimated three hundred grievances pending the third step. This is far and away a better system than we are currently used to for the resolution of these grievances. It is my hope that once this system is functioning correctly we will see a reduction in violations, and consequently grievances, as the Company learns that the old system of doing what they want and waiting two or three years, or longer before resolution is reached will have passed. Over the long term this should also solve the continuing problem of holding people out of service and then offering a return to work deal involving discipline and suspension time for lesser infractions.

Why would the Company agree to a system such as the Joint Board? The Company should realize a cost savings directly through a unified enforcement of the contract which will reduce overtime bypass and other payments for one reason. Another hidden cost item involves employee morale. An old but true cliché is "Justice delayed is justice denied". When members feel they have no legitimate vehicle to address contract violations they get angry, apathetic, and a myriad of other negative emotions. This impacts the bottom line through increased casual sick leave usage as well as a decrease in overall production. I'm not so naïve as to believe this one agreement alone will change the culture and magically improve morale given our history, but this is a step in the right direction.

How this Board came about still amazes me. To achieve an improvement to language like this, something many members have voiced concerns about for years, before the entire package is finalized is unprecedented in Section Six bargaining. I remember sitting on the Screening Committee for the 2000 agreement with the IAM and there were hundreds of proposals to substantially change the third step of the grievance procedure. All that was achieved then was an addition of time limits to the procedure that accomplished nothing over the last decade as the volume of grievances continued to climb. This agreement speaks volumes to the influence the IBT has in representational settings.

I will try to update you after the Board meets to let you know how the first session went. After the Board we are scheduled to negotiate until the end of the week.

That's all for now,

Bob

Happy Thanksgiving

I would like to wish you and your families a very Happy Thanksgiving.

Facebook and Twitter

As you may have noticed on the right side of the screen I have added a Twitter feed to the blog. The reason for this addition is because when I'm on the road I don't always have internet access but I can post a quick update via my phone. I know not many of you use this service according to the last survey on the blog but there is a wealth of information available via Twitter.

Also after insistence from my wife I signed up for a Facebook account. Facebook requires a free registration to use their service. In doing a search I found that the Teamsters have a Facebook page and it can be found here. It's good to see that the Union is looking for every avenue to communicate with the membership.

Airline Executive Compensation

Here is an article on Airline Executive compensation. The part of the article that struck me was the average annual compensation for the employees. Employees receive on average fifty seven thousand dollars, the same as we have for the last decade. Ten years is a long time to remain stagnant for an entire industry's wage scale.

Aircraft order

Here is an article from the Chicago Tribune talking about the upcoming aircraft order. In the article United spokesperson Jean Medina downplays an earlier rumor that a deal is imminent.

Painful Pension article

This is not news to any of us that lived through this period, but here is article regarding a GAO review of executive compensation at companies that later forfeited employee pension plans. United was listed as one of the four most egregious offenders. Read at your own risk as it is infuriating.

Merger posits

United Airlines President John Tague in this article posted on TheStreet claims mergers can work. Mr. Tague points to the Delta/Northwest merger as an "inarguable" and "recent proof point" that mergers can work in the airline industry. It is an interesting article and worth the read.

Airbus?????

Airbus feels it may secure an order with United Airlines within the next six months. Here is the article.

Sick leave

How much of a burden are sick leave benefits to American companies? In this article referencing a Harvard study, this country actually lags far behind the fifteen most competitive countries in the world in all forms of paid leave for illness for employees or family members. So, according to this study, more stringent sick leave policies are a hindrance rather than a benefit as the conventional wisdom would imply.

Edit: The name of the book that the study's findings are found in is "Raising the Global Floor: Dismantling the Myth that We Can't Afford Good Working Conditions for Everyone." and here is a link to the book synopsis.

The following is an excerpt from that page; "The authors' findings are dramatic. They show that there is no relationship between unemployment rates and providing basic protections in a series of critical areas. Strikingly, data also indicate that good working conditions can make countries more competitive. There are no long-term economic gains to be had if workers are denied paid sick leave, paid annual leave, paid parental leave, the right to a day of rest, and many other basic protections that would improve the quality of their lives."

Weekly report 11-15-09

General Items

There was no report last week. I refrained from writing last week's report for several reasons, the most notable of which was the Company's decision to send out RFP's (requests for proposals) on the GQ shops in IAD and SFO. I felt it would be better to express my opinion about this when I was calmer so that I would not hinder the efforts of the IBT Leadership in this matter. I expressed my position to our Leadership in Chicago and they not only understood, but were already working towards a solution. Now the regular weekly report follows.

There were a couple of interesting articles out this week. Two of those articles were previously posted on the blog, and two more were forwarded from Jock Creach and Dave Saucedo in Seattle. The latter two articles deal with Secretary Lahood's meetings with representatives from Airlines, Unions and Manufacturers regarding a plan to help save the airline industry and this meeting was requested by big labor in the country including the IBT. Here is a link to the first article. After reading this scroll down to a comment from Michael H. and read his post. His response was well thought out in my opinion. The next article can be found here and it deals with the same meeting. Secretary LaHood's reaction at the end does not leave the impression that he is in favor of re-regulating the airline industry. The previously posted articles deal with the ICE (InterContinental Exchange) and how oil prices continue to be manipulated and an article on the proposed BA-Iberia merger. Scroll down to find those articles.

The first Joint Board of Adjustment will be held on December 1^st in San Francisco. Dulles currently has eight outstanding third steps waiting to be heard. As reported in the latest SFO Business Agents report I will be sitting on the Board. I am very honored that Clacy asked me to participate in this process and I look forward to working on the clearing of our grievance backlog.

As for negotiations, the parties have agreed to accelerate the process. Please follow the link at the top of the page to get the full details from the latest session.

For those that feel an overhaul in the health care delivery system is not needed I wish you could have listened to the presentation by the Company and its vendors on their healthcare proposal. All companies are expecting at least seven percentage points increase in annual premiums for the foreseeable future according to one speaker. The speaker pointed out however, that rate increase may be a conservative estimate. It's said in polls that most are happy with their current coverage, but I wonder how happy are they about the premiums and other related expenses they pay? For me, I can answer not very happy at all.

MM

Over the past two weeks several things have occurred. The issue affecting most members was the re-establishment of the ten hour schedule for the Cabin Crew. Not everyone was able to get the ten hour schedule on midnights however due to the heavy bidding by the swing shift group to these open slots. The result was about five people were left on the eight hour midnight schedule. I have talked to a few of you regarding possible changes in shift and RDO assignments and I will bring this up on Monday when I meet with Ron.

Larry Calhoun, Coordinator from JFK, provided me with several previously answered grievances for members that bumped into IAD. The reason for this was to keep an historical record for these members. There has already been one grievance identified that was sustained but the Company never acted upon the decision.

On Tuesday there will be an IRH for an accident that occurred recently. I feel the Union has a good case and I will report back on this matter after the decision. As an aside please be careful out on the ramp. While there were many mitigating factors, including poor equipment that led up to this accident, the bottom line is I would like to see you all go home alive and in one piece.

As for the grievance involving the exercise of seniority while not having a current A&P license I discussed this with the negotiating committee and there may be an old decision out of Denver that has bearing on this issue. When I receive the answer I will review it to decide if there is merit to proceed.

A grievance hearing was held last week for a return to a former classification within the ninety day trial period. I felt the Union had a good case and I expect an answer soon on this.

There will be no changes to the vacation rules this year except for the process of choosing within a specified time. This will make us more consistent with other hubs and finishing on time was the number one issue from the recent vacation rules online vote.

GQ

The big news is obvious. This was the most perverse interpretation of contract language that I have ever heard of. I am hopeful the IBT Leadership can come to meaningful resolution on this issue.

PV

There is a meeting scheduled on Wednesday with the Manager to discuss open items in the shop. After the meeting I will report the results.

That's all for now,

Bob

Oil Speculation

Wow! Here is an article on the scam that the ICE is perpetrating on us all. This article explores why and how large brokerages are screwing us all as far as commodities are concerned and its well worth the read.

BA, Iberia tie-up

Here is a link to an article describing the proposed merger of British Airways and Iberia signed by both boards on Thursday. It appears that worldwide consolidation of the industry will continue as airlines struggle to return to profitability.

Merger rumors heating up

Along the same lines as the article posted last week in the London Financial Times which interviewed CEO Glen Tilton, merger rumors are indeed heating up. Here is a link from the Denver blog to a Bloomberg article where the President of Continental is quoted as saying they are still considering a tie up of the two carriers. For me, I have to say I hope this merger happens and I hope it is soon. It has been obvious for some time that our current management team is acting as real estate brokers and it would be refreshing to work for a group that had a desire to run an airline.

Weekly report 11-1-9

General Items

It appears the NMB is seriously considering a change in the way Unions are certified. Unions are pushing for the change which would no longer require 50% plus 1 of eligible voters to cast ballots, but rather they would use the vote count of the eligible's to determine whether employees choose to become represented or not. The proposal would make the process the same as the way we elect public representatives to office now. As an example if a property has 100 employees where only 49 people vote and the outcome is 30 to 19 in favor of the Union, then the Union would be certified. As an aside for most public elections 49% would be considered a heavy turnout. This proposal would make it much easier to organize in the industry. This is a clear example of why voting is important as this past election determined the makeup of the Board. There are now two former Union officials sitting on the Board making these decisions. The reason for this is the President appoints the members of this board for terms of three years, with the consent of the Senate, and no more than two of the three can be from the same political party. Here is a description of that process. Last year under a different Board the TTD proposed these same rule changes when the Board Chairperson was the former chief lobbyist for Northwest Airlines and you can guess the outcome. Here is the story about it. This proposal would not change the number of employees needed to start an election process from what I understand so on an organized property you would still need 50% plus one of cards signed. It will be interesting to see how the Board rules on this.

Please be careful on the ramp. There were a couple of accidents this week and poor equipment, weather and congestion all played roles in these incidents. If you have equipment that does not perform the necessary functions such as defoggers, headlights, brakes, or is in a condition that renders it unsafe, do everyone a favor and red tag it. I understand that this could be a large majority of the equipment we use on a daily basis and the hardships that presents but it is better to go home in one piece than the hospital or worse. Article XXI K of the agreement provides for management rights under the agreement and they bear responsibility for the efficient operation of the airline. Article I and Article XX require the Company to provide a safe working environment utilizing reasonable work rules and conditions. I tell you this because the Company agreed to these terms and they should not be surprised when we ask them to abide by these rules. So, I repeat, please be safe and do not use defective equipment.

MM

It was a busy week in MM. All but one of the outstanding second steps was answered, and I am still reviewing those answers for possible appeal to the Joint Board.

With the Cabin Crew going to a ten hour schedule there will now be approximately 25 openings on the ten hour midnight shift. Those members that wish to remain on the midnight eight hour schedule may do so. Please ensure your ESS is updated as we will be meeting on the ninth to begin the movement process. For the Cabin Crew the Company is going to have a core group doing that work and will supplement as needed from the available manpower on any given night. So this will not be treated as a separate bid area.

GQ

I met with Greg this week and we discussed the current state of the shop. In addition I was informed by Dwayne that a formal investigation is to be conducted regarding tampering with security cameras.

PV

I met with Brandon to discuss outstanding grievances in the shop on Tuesday. When Steve left he was missing the first step for the Jetway roller outsourcing but he informed Brandon that the grievance had been filed in a timely manner and I will give him a copy of the original this week.

That's all for now,

Bob