Freight Dog said:
......and then Eagle goes on strike with no financial backing for their membership in form of strike pay or paying the lawyers and negotiators.
In Union-101, one learns (or should learn) that you can't "buy" a strike. If a union group makes the strike decision based on how much "strike pay" it will get, the strike is lost before it begins.
We don't "pay" for negotiators they volunteer. We incur "flight pay loss", which at our wage levels is manageable (if we don't have to also support a top heavy structure, much of which doesn't support us). Paying for one good attorney that represents you, is perhaps better than 3 attorneys all working for someone else.
The in-house union working with APA.. now there's a good one. You think by kissing APA's butt, they get you your 14 ERJ's back from TSA and relax their scope? Keep the jokes coming.
You are correct. Kissing the APA's butt or getting in bed with them will not help the Eagle pilots. Now that I've said that, I must ask you this. Will kissing the ALPA's butt get back the 14 ERJ's or relax the APA's scope? The answer to that appears to be self evident.
By coincidence, the APA's "scope agenda" is identical to the ALPA's "scope agenda". If that is EGL's problem, the APA or the ALPA = six of one, half-dozen of the other.
This one really cracks me up... "ALPA gave us 16 year contract." No bro, you gave it to yourself by voting for it. ALPA signed it because YOU said YES. Now you're pissed. I don't know, but it seems like to me that you reap what you sow..
With respect to that statement, the only thing I can think of to say is "Father forgive them, for they know not what they do (say)".
Nope, I don't work for Eagle, so nope, I don't know what the COMPLETE story is over there, but I can tell ya that dumping ALPA and going with a BRAND NEW in-house union is about as dumb as cutting off your head for having a headache.
You were right. You don't know the complete story over there. You should have stopped there and quit while you were ahead.
Based on your remarks, it appears you don't know ANY of the story. I happen to agree that leaving the ALPA may not be the best answer right now, but it is hardly the equivalent of cutting off your head.
The ALPA may sell itself as the panacea for every airline pilot's needs. That's good PR, but far from the truth.
ALPA is a great Association and has done many great things for airline pilots, most of which we seldom recognize. It is unquestionably the "right" union for the major airlines. However, the industry has changed and continues to change. The ALPA must change with it. So far, it has not. ALPA's efforts on behalf of the small carriers are less than stellar and in dire need of significant modification.
I believe the Association should fix itself internally. However, it must move in that direction NOW, not later. If the ALPA is unwilling or unable to change, there are other options and they are viable. That they are being considered by the Eagle pilots, is not a crime and not high treason.
Whenver a labor union, any labor union, is unwilling or unable to serve the interests of ALL of it's members, it has outlived its usefulness to those it is unable to serve.
Fly safe.
