Lear70
JAFFO
- Joined
- Oct 17, 2003
- Posts
- 7,487
Jetway etiquette? You lost me... or did I bolt for a door in ATL going home or something? 
My experience at the table has been limited to my experience in D.C. last July, although I've been doing contract analysis for a long time now, plus disciplinary meetings for pilots, testified in federal court against my prior company in a termination case, and lots of other non-negotiating union experience for nearly 7 years now.
Those things all help in a negotiating position but, should the recall be successful tomorrow and should I run for the president's office, I would not expect to be in the negotiating chamber on a daily basis.
In my opinion, that's where Allen made his mistake. He was a one-man-band, trying to micromanage and control EVERYTHING which wore him down, Kolski took advantage of, and we are now operating with several concessions before we've even gotten to vote on the concessionary Agreement. As much as he's bad-mouthed and lied about me, Allen's not a bad person, he's simply tried to run this union as an autocracy, which does NOT work, and he's made decisions that have cost US, the pilots, Quality Of Life issues and will CONTINUE to do so if HE thinks it's the right thing to do, making misleading or outright false statements in support of his beliefs, rather than him doing what the pilots want and DIRECT him to do.
He ran off Mike B because Allen insisted on doing the negotiating himself. Allen has just about run off our Grievance Chair, Rob D because Rob doesn't get a say in grievances because he's almost never even invited to his own committee's System Board where Allen gives things up. Allen's run off his own board after the SAP 2 and Christmas debacles, and 2 or 3 of them are just voting whatever everyone else wants until their term is up and they won't run again.
That's NOT what a union president should be.
A union president is responsible to organize and LEAD. A Leader delegates tasks, entrusting those he leads to do what he/she and the BoD instruct. A Leader finds talent that will be able to accomplish those goals; if I were to run, I already have 3 in mind for part of the new NC, all 3 of which have EXTENSIVE NEGOTIATING experience, all 3 of which have said they'd be interested if I was at the helm, only 1 of which you've seen in union work AT THIS COMPANY before. The BoD would ultimately have to sign off on them as well, but I know I'd certainly be pushing for their talent and experience to utilize for the greater good of the pilot group.
My involvement in the actual negotiating room would be MINIMAL, as it should be. To open negotiations, to appear from time to time as-needed in full support of EACH AND EVERY NEGOTIATOR IN THE ROOM, (even if they're not popular with the company), and to be there when it's time to sign.
The REST of the time, it should be your negotiators in there, with daily updates to the pres and the BoD, with weekly progress updates to the pilot group WITH SPECIFICS. Not every little word or argument, but a focused overview of what was discussed, what progress was or wasn't made, and your goals for the next session. When a section is T.A.'d, I believe it should be presented to the pilot group so that it can be digested one section at a time. It's hard to get a group to read 231 pages of contract, but 30 pages at a time WOULD be studied.
In that capacity, I do believe I am qualified. Like you said, Spidey, it has nothing to do with being an F/O or not, and everything to do with having the background and experience to lead, organize, and delegate effectively.
The people are in place to move forward, both in my camps and others. Candidates with a LOT of experience who are ready to step into V.P. offices as well in November, as well as potential candidates for the other positions that will open as a normal course of voting. Problem is, most of those candidates have only said they would get involved if someone they "trusted" to do the right thing (and not throw them under the boat or run over them) was leading the NPA and no one else who has stepped up fits the bill for them (which I've tried to talk them out of but so far, no dice).
Heck, 2 of the guys who have approached me I've known for almost a decade and have negotiated contracts at 2 other airlines, plus one very experienced senior Captain here and there's always the hope that Mike B would return to the table if asked, although I'm getting the distinct impression he might have a plan of his own.
Tomorrow the recall vote closes. Within 24-48 hours it will be certified and announced. If that recall is successful, I expect 4 candidates to come forward, not including myself.
Brad D. who has extensive experience and whose past isn't as "colorful" as some people paint.
John S. who has the drive and motivation but has some odd ideas of "downsizing" the NPA structure during a contract negotiation (not a great idea). His background, incidentally, is very similar to my own with various committee work but no NC or grievance work that I'm aware of.
Mike B has alluded to someone that he knows running but he hasn't said who yet.
I also expect either a Noel P or a Dave P / Tommy B camp candidate to appear as well.
It really depends on who Mike's camp puts forward. I like John S, but I don't agree with his ideas.
I like Brad D and have found him to be a very honest and straightforward person the last several months and a trusted ally during the slander campaign from the current NC, but there's just too large of a hangup from the senior pilots who were here during that "incident" that would get in the way of solidarity.
We all know what a Noel P candidate would do in office, Tommy B has been there before and we know that story also, and Dave P (who I personally REALLY appreciate as a person and instructor, can't say enough nice things about the guy on a personal level) has the other side of the equation with a "get-along" style of managemet relations (former C.P., etc).
That really only leaves the unknown of the MB camp and who they will put forward. If it's Mike himself, I'm torn as well, because I think Mike's best calling is AT THE TABLE (everyone I've talked to says he was FANTASTIC in that position) and I don't think the union president should BE at the table daily.
Whoever it is, I do believe he's going to have to be a candidate that ALL seniority groups can get behind. I've said it before, I'd honestly prefer not to run for this particular office. I'd prefer to be on the NC (not leading it, but ON it), or, if not appointed to the NC, then I would certainly run for V.P. in November (which is only going to be about 30 days after we elect a new president).
But, if I don't see a better candidate out there who can represent ALL the seniority groups EQUALLY with similar ideas, then yes, I'll run.
It'll then be up to the pilots to pick who they think will best represent them individually, the pilot group as a whole, and this airline's future moving forward. Maybe I'm WAY off-base with my goals and ideals (I've been called "hopelessly and unrealistically idealistic" before), but that's up to you, the pilots to decide.
I am working on a position paper, and will post it here when/if it is appropriate.
Sorry for the long-winded post, just wanted to address your question without turning it into my position paper which, at this point, would be premature, given that we don't know for absolute certain that AP and MS will be removed from office. My personal belief is the recall vote will be much closer than previously believed... EVERY VOTE COUNTS!
My experience at the table has been limited to my experience in D.C. last July, although I've been doing contract analysis for a long time now, plus disciplinary meetings for pilots, testified in federal court against my prior company in a termination case, and lots of other non-negotiating union experience for nearly 7 years now.
Those things all help in a negotiating position but, should the recall be successful tomorrow and should I run for the president's office, I would not expect to be in the negotiating chamber on a daily basis.
In my opinion, that's where Allen made his mistake. He was a one-man-band, trying to micromanage and control EVERYTHING which wore him down, Kolski took advantage of, and we are now operating with several concessions before we've even gotten to vote on the concessionary Agreement. As much as he's bad-mouthed and lied about me, Allen's not a bad person, he's simply tried to run this union as an autocracy, which does NOT work, and he's made decisions that have cost US, the pilots, Quality Of Life issues and will CONTINUE to do so if HE thinks it's the right thing to do, making misleading or outright false statements in support of his beliefs, rather than him doing what the pilots want and DIRECT him to do.
He ran off Mike B because Allen insisted on doing the negotiating himself. Allen has just about run off our Grievance Chair, Rob D because Rob doesn't get a say in grievances because he's almost never even invited to his own committee's System Board where Allen gives things up. Allen's run off his own board after the SAP 2 and Christmas debacles, and 2 or 3 of them are just voting whatever everyone else wants until their term is up and they won't run again.
That's NOT what a union president should be.
A union president is responsible to organize and LEAD. A Leader delegates tasks, entrusting those he leads to do what he/she and the BoD instruct. A Leader finds talent that will be able to accomplish those goals; if I were to run, I already have 3 in mind for part of the new NC, all 3 of which have EXTENSIVE NEGOTIATING experience, all 3 of which have said they'd be interested if I was at the helm, only 1 of which you've seen in union work AT THIS COMPANY before. The BoD would ultimately have to sign off on them as well, but I know I'd certainly be pushing for their talent and experience to utilize for the greater good of the pilot group.
My involvement in the actual negotiating room would be MINIMAL, as it should be. To open negotiations, to appear from time to time as-needed in full support of EACH AND EVERY NEGOTIATOR IN THE ROOM, (even if they're not popular with the company), and to be there when it's time to sign.
The REST of the time, it should be your negotiators in there, with daily updates to the pres and the BoD, with weekly progress updates to the pilot group WITH SPECIFICS. Not every little word or argument, but a focused overview of what was discussed, what progress was or wasn't made, and your goals for the next session. When a section is T.A.'d, I believe it should be presented to the pilot group so that it can be digested one section at a time. It's hard to get a group to read 231 pages of contract, but 30 pages at a time WOULD be studied.
In that capacity, I do believe I am qualified. Like you said, Spidey, it has nothing to do with being an F/O or not, and everything to do with having the background and experience to lead, organize, and delegate effectively.
The people are in place to move forward, both in my camps and others. Candidates with a LOT of experience who are ready to step into V.P. offices as well in November, as well as potential candidates for the other positions that will open as a normal course of voting. Problem is, most of those candidates have only said they would get involved if someone they "trusted" to do the right thing (and not throw them under the boat or run over them) was leading the NPA and no one else who has stepped up fits the bill for them (which I've tried to talk them out of but so far, no dice).
Heck, 2 of the guys who have approached me I've known for almost a decade and have negotiated contracts at 2 other airlines, plus one very experienced senior Captain here and there's always the hope that Mike B would return to the table if asked, although I'm getting the distinct impression he might have a plan of his own.
Tomorrow the recall vote closes. Within 24-48 hours it will be certified and announced. If that recall is successful, I expect 4 candidates to come forward, not including myself.
Brad D. who has extensive experience and whose past isn't as "colorful" as some people paint.
John S. who has the drive and motivation but has some odd ideas of "downsizing" the NPA structure during a contract negotiation (not a great idea). His background, incidentally, is very similar to my own with various committee work but no NC or grievance work that I'm aware of.
Mike B has alluded to someone that he knows running but he hasn't said who yet.
I also expect either a Noel P or a Dave P / Tommy B camp candidate to appear as well.
It really depends on who Mike's camp puts forward. I like John S, but I don't agree with his ideas.
I like Brad D and have found him to be a very honest and straightforward person the last several months and a trusted ally during the slander campaign from the current NC, but there's just too large of a hangup from the senior pilots who were here during that "incident" that would get in the way of solidarity.
We all know what a Noel P candidate would do in office, Tommy B has been there before and we know that story also, and Dave P (who I personally REALLY appreciate as a person and instructor, can't say enough nice things about the guy on a personal level) has the other side of the equation with a "get-along" style of managemet relations (former C.P., etc).
That really only leaves the unknown of the MB camp and who they will put forward. If it's Mike himself, I'm torn as well, because I think Mike's best calling is AT THE TABLE (everyone I've talked to says he was FANTASTIC in that position) and I don't think the union president should BE at the table daily.
Whoever it is, I do believe he's going to have to be a candidate that ALL seniority groups can get behind. I've said it before, I'd honestly prefer not to run for this particular office. I'd prefer to be on the NC (not leading it, but ON it), or, if not appointed to the NC, then I would certainly run for V.P. in November (which is only going to be about 30 days after we elect a new president).
But, if I don't see a better candidate out there who can represent ALL the seniority groups EQUALLY with similar ideas, then yes, I'll run.
It'll then be up to the pilots to pick who they think will best represent them individually, the pilot group as a whole, and this airline's future moving forward. Maybe I'm WAY off-base with my goals and ideals (I've been called "hopelessly and unrealistically idealistic" before), but that's up to you, the pilots to decide.
I am working on a position paper, and will post it here when/if it is appropriate.
Sorry for the long-winded post, just wanted to address your question without turning it into my position paper which, at this point, would be premature, given that we don't know for absolute certain that AP and MS will be removed from office. My personal belief is the recall vote will be much closer than previously believed... EVERY VOTE COUNTS!
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