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Looks like Airways will give the new flying to the contract carriers and leave more furloughees on the street.
Union gets say on plan for jets
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By Thomas Olson
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Friday, April 9, 2004
US Airways pilots union leaders decided Thursday to let members vote on whether to ratify a tentative agreement giving management greater flexibility on deploying regional jets.
The 12-member Master Executives Council did not recommend whether pilots should approve the controversial proposal at its meeting held in Coraopolis. Leaders of the Air Line Pilots Association will soon conduct road shows to explain the issue, said spokesman Jack Stephan. It was not yet clear when ballots would go out.
US Airways' proposal, known as "scope relief," would let management assign new regional jets to independent express-carrier partners. But that would cut in half the number of US Airways pilots called back from furlough, compared with assigning the aircraft to an express carrier owned by US Airways, such as MidAtlantic Airways.
The airline and its pilots have negotiated over scope relief for several months. But the two sides have not initiated a broad renegotiation of the pilots' contract because US Airways has not yet submitted its restructuring plan to its board.
"We soon will begin formal negotiations with the pilots," said airline spokesman Dave Castelveter. "However, we have yet to reach agreements to negotiate with the other unions."
The carrier's nearly 8,000 local workers include roughly 1,900 aircraft mechanics, 1,175 flight attendants, and 750 pilots.
That perceived threat to pilots' "jets-for-jobs" agreement with the airline was a sore point that led to the call for new union negotiators. Pilots leaders delayed a vote until today that could replace its negotiating team with tougher bargainers.
The recall push by five of the leadership's 12 members could hinder efforts to cut more costs at US Airways, which is already at odds with its other major unions over granting more concessions.
Flight attendants at US Airways are upset that the company since February has spurned union requests for management's restructuring plan and what's expected from employees. Flight attendants gave up $102 million in annual wages and benefits in 2002.
"Frankly, I don't think they have a business plan," said Perry Hayes, president of the Association of Flight Attendants. "I think (CEO) Dave Siegel just wants to take more from the employees."
Aircraft mechanics, already simmering over US Airways' outsourcing of Airbus maintenance, refuse to reopen their contract, said a union spokesman yesterday. "(N)o amount of employee concessions could save a company from its own incompetent management, " said International Association of Machinists leaders last week.
"All that we've given back over the years speaks for itself," said Pittsburgh-based pilot Fred Freshwater. He and four other pilot representatives -- from Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and Boston -- pressed the rest of the 12-member Master Executive Council to recall its negotiators. The council, which governs the union, consists of two reps from US Airways' six main bases.
"We'd like to see more from (US Airways') side, which is not forthcoming, it seems," Freshwater said.
US Airways pilots gave up $565 million in annual wages and benefits in 2002. The pilots also have lost 1,879 jobs since late 2001, including more than 600 in Pittsburgh.
"Our timeline is short," CEO Siegel said in a phone message to workers last Friday. He said the airline needs to be "in serious negotiations" with its major unions by the end of April.
Thomas Olson can be reached at [email protected] or (412) 320-7854.
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Union gets say on plan for jets
Tools
Print this article
E-mail this article
Subscribe to this paper
Larger / Smaller Text
By Thomas Olson
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Friday, April 9, 2004
US Airways pilots union leaders decided Thursday to let members vote on whether to ratify a tentative agreement giving management greater flexibility on deploying regional jets.
The 12-member Master Executives Council did not recommend whether pilots should approve the controversial proposal at its meeting held in Coraopolis. Leaders of the Air Line Pilots Association will soon conduct road shows to explain the issue, said spokesman Jack Stephan. It was not yet clear when ballots would go out.
US Airways' proposal, known as "scope relief," would let management assign new regional jets to independent express-carrier partners. But that would cut in half the number of US Airways pilots called back from furlough, compared with assigning the aircraft to an express carrier owned by US Airways, such as MidAtlantic Airways.
The airline and its pilots have negotiated over scope relief for several months. But the two sides have not initiated a broad renegotiation of the pilots' contract because US Airways has not yet submitted its restructuring plan to its board.
"We soon will begin formal negotiations with the pilots," said airline spokesman Dave Castelveter. "However, we have yet to reach agreements to negotiate with the other unions."
The carrier's nearly 8,000 local workers include roughly 1,900 aircraft mechanics, 1,175 flight attendants, and 750 pilots.
That perceived threat to pilots' "jets-for-jobs" agreement with the airline was a sore point that led to the call for new union negotiators. Pilots leaders delayed a vote until today that could replace its negotiating team with tougher bargainers.
The recall push by five of the leadership's 12 members could hinder efforts to cut more costs at US Airways, which is already at odds with its other major unions over granting more concessions.
Flight attendants at US Airways are upset that the company since February has spurned union requests for management's restructuring plan and what's expected from employees. Flight attendants gave up $102 million in annual wages and benefits in 2002.
"Frankly, I don't think they have a business plan," said Perry Hayes, president of the Association of Flight Attendants. "I think (CEO) Dave Siegel just wants to take more from the employees."
Aircraft mechanics, already simmering over US Airways' outsourcing of Airbus maintenance, refuse to reopen their contract, said a union spokesman yesterday. "(N)o amount of employee concessions could save a company from its own incompetent management, " said International Association of Machinists leaders last week.
"All that we've given back over the years speaks for itself," said Pittsburgh-based pilot Fred Freshwater. He and four other pilot representatives -- from Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and Boston -- pressed the rest of the 12-member Master Executive Council to recall its negotiators. The council, which governs the union, consists of two reps from US Airways' six main bases.
"We'd like to see more from (US Airways') side, which is not forthcoming, it seems," Freshwater said.
US Airways pilots gave up $565 million in annual wages and benefits in 2002. The pilots also have lost 1,879 jobs since late 2001, including more than 600 in Pittsburgh.
"Our timeline is short," CEO Siegel said in a phone message to workers last Friday. He said the airline needs to be "in serious negotiations" with its major unions by the end of April.
Thomas Olson can be reached at [email protected] or (412) 320-7854.
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