abxaviator
Well-known member
- Joined
- Aug 12, 2002
- Posts
- 372
Pathetic, Inept, Wholly Incompetent, Total Joke, Unprofessional, Embarrassing…
These – and other words and phrases – were used by ABX Crewmembers to describe Management’s performance at the crew meeting held Thursday night/Friday morning. Instead of a creating a win-win situation out of the ANA Charter opportunity, Management has turned it into a potential lose-lose proposition.
How did this happen? For the past several months the Management negotiating team – comprised of Bob Morgenfeld, Bob Boja, Mike Vollmer and Mark Detroit – has flip-flopped several times over whether they needed to negotiate International Operations. They recently fessed-up to being in negotiations with ANA, which is welcome news, but it requires serious discussions about international operations.
When attempting to negotiate international crew schedules, rest periods, hotels, meals, transportation and the like, the union negotiating team hit a brick wall. The Management negotiating team could not provide accurate information on block hours, number of crews needed, transportation, hotels … or anything else for that matter. Their response to the union’s questions was: we don’t know, we haven’t thought about it, and the like.
Reportedly, Joe Hete decided that ABX would simply open a domicile in Japan. The only problem is that the Company has to enter into negotiations under section 6 and negotiate the changes necessary to Article 14 (New Domiciles).
The union sent a section 6 notice to the Company, and Management responded by ordering the union to produce its proposal several work days in advance of the planned meeting date. Of course there were less than ten-days between the date of the letter and the Company’s imposed due date.
The union advised the Company that it had hired consultants to identify and advise the union on all of the issues involved in creating and staffing a foreign domicile. The union made it clear that it was not going to negotiate on this important issue from a position of ignorance. The union would need time to evaluate and determine the implications and ramifications of a Japan domicile on the Crewmembers.
The Company then resorted to their old tired tactic of creating a crisis to get its way … call a meeting with the crews, we only have 42 days to staff the Japan domicile! This ham-fisted attempt to get the crews to stampede the Executive Board into accepting an unacceptable agreement was stoked with Management’s cries of … It’s up to your Union.” (Interesting aside: Bob Morgenfeld had spoken with Dave Ross on Thursday, yet neglected to mention his plans for the crew meeting that evening.)
Of course, when pressed by the crewmembers the Management team was unable to answer any questions about how the Japan Domicile would impact pensions, 401(k) plans, taxes, health insurance (maybe United Health Care will reimburse a crewmember after he pays all the bills), housing, transportation, education of children, cost of living, etc. They also became exacerbated when asked how a crewmember could bid on this if they don’t have any of the information. Their answer was a curt: Just don’t bid on it then.
This bums rush tactic has never worked, and it never will. It only leads crewmembers to believe that their management is, well … pathetic, inept, wholly incompetent, a total joke, unprofessional and embarrassing.
uke: :laugh: 
