JECKEL said:
FlyDeltasJets,
You are way too literal. Yes a bridge way by which one could travel from point A to point B. However I was using it as a link of communication and cooperation, which, as we all know, is a requirement to get things done/accomplished.
Delta pilots are expecting CMR/ASA to "share" the burden at the same time they are saying that Comair pilots will never be able to interview at Delta because our decisions our MEC has made.
You are asking us to hire furloughed Delta guys without them having to give up their seniority number. You are asking us to share the burden of concessions. If that is not an attempt at "bridging" by your side TO OUR SIDE, I don't know what it is.
Jeckel,
Your (and flaps30's) understanding of the facts are incorrect. We have not asked you to shoulder any of the burden. We did not ask you to negotiate anything. We have not, nor will we, request that you take pay cuts. That is a myth, with no basis in fact, started by a few guys who are (understandably) upset at your group. It is simply not true, and repeating it only spreads misinformation. I would be almost as upset as you if any DCI carrier had to take a paycut, as that would give mgt even more incentive to continue the outsourcing of our jobs. It's a shame this rumor persists. It simply isn't true.
Delta management has stated many times that they are not hiring Delta pilots at cmr because "the cmr pilots would burn the house down." Fred Buttrell and Fred Reid made similar comments the other day in ATL during a roadshow, saying that they were concerned about "CRM issues". Do you find it curious that they have hired furloughees at ASA when the ASA mec gave their blessing?
That is all your mec was asked to do. Give a blessing. Stop objecting to the hiring of unemployed pilots at the bottom of the list. In return, we offered to pursue a form of preferential hiring. We did not offer 100% flow through, nor would Delta have ever accepted it. Nor would it be wise to spend negotiating capital pursuing it when we are entereing concession talks. We also did not ask for 100% preferential hiring at cmr. We asked for a simple thing: Stop working to prevent mgt from hiring our unemployed pilots at the bottom of your list. It would have cost them nothing. We did not ask them to "shoulder the burden." We asked them to write a letter saying that they do not oppose the hiring of Delta furloughees. It would have cost them the price of a stamp. If a price of a stamp is what you consider "shouldering the burden" then you must make a lot less than I thought!
The truth is, it would not have cost your mec a thing. Instead, they used our furloughees as hostages and asked our mec to
1) use our negotiating capital to obtain scope for them ( you know, scope. The thing that 25% of your pilot group are suing to destroy.)
2) allow them unlimited amounts of 70 and 90 seaters, which would lead to far more furloughs.
3) spend our negotiating capital pursuing onelist (actually, something that I would like to see, but realize is a pipedream. Mgt would never agree to it, and the cmr pilots seem to want us to make all the sacrifices to pursue it. Come to us with a prenup staple agreement, I'm sure the reception would be better.)
Keep in mind, your mec demanded these things in return for NOT OBJECTING to the hiring of a small handful of our unemployed pilots at the BOTTOM of the cmr list. How would that have harmed anyone? In return, we offered to pursue a preferential hiring scheme for the cmr pilots at Delta. Was it 100%? No. But it is still significant, as I believe that the ASA pilots will see when we start hiring again.
Your mec was petty, vindictive, jealous, and short-sighted, and it upsets me that so few cmr pilots seem to realize it. I applaud my mec chairman for not agreeing to lawson's laughable demands.
P.S.
This version of the meeting is not propaganda, it did not come from my mec. It came directly from a letter from jc lawson to the pilots of cmr. As they say in court, the facts of the case are not in dispute.
PPS
I used some license with the "bridge" analogy. I think it is appropriate.