F/A's call for nationwide strike

[mad691]

Press ReleaseSource: Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, AFL-CIO



Union President Calls for Nationwide Strike
Tuesday November 16, 10:01 am ET Flight Attendants Say 'No' to Unrelenting Concessions

PITTSBURGH, Nov. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- Patricia Friend, president of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, today called on the union's Board of Directors to authorize a nationwide strike against the concerted effort by airline management to wipe out union contracts and deprive employees of their livelihood. AFA represents flight attendants at 26 airlines.


"We will stand up for the profession we have built by taking a stand for flight attendants everywhere, in this country and around the world," Friend declared to board members at the opening of the board's annual meeting, in Pittsburgh. "Airline management needs to understand that there will be serious consequences if they persist in their attacks on our contracts."

Friend noted that through bankruptcy, management has made an end run around the collective bargaining process by threatening liquidation and introducing a third party, the court, with the power to impose a draconian settlement. For example, US Airways last week asked a court to approve its plan to tear up its union contracts, scrap its pension plans and eliminate health coverage for retirees. United Airlines, the nation's second-largest carrier, wants nearly $140 million in concessions from flight attendants, on top of the $314 million annually it has already extracted from the flight attendant work group. United also seeks hundreds of millions more by attempting to terminate its pension plans. Seven carriers with AFA representation are currently in bankruptcy, and others are on the brink.

"Our entire industry is in turmoil and the careers of our flight attendants all hang in the balance," Friend said. "Pensions, for which flight attendants have dedicated many years of hard work, are being wiped out with the sound of a judge's gavel. Health care coverage for employees in an essentially unhealthy work environment is reaching cost levels unaffordable to flight attendants who every year sacrifice more of their income to 'save their airline.' Almost everywhere we look, flight attendants are being forced to work longer hours with reduced rest time, and all for ever-decreasing wages. This must stop"

The AFA Board of Directors is expected to act on a resolution authorizing a strike later today.

More than 46,000 flight attendants join together to form AFA, the world's largest flight attendant union. AFA is part of the 700,000 member strong Communications Workers of America, AFL-CIO. Visit us at http://www.afanet.org.





Source: Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, AFL-CIO

 

[CF34-3B1]

Is that legal?

 

[Dennis Miller]

"We will stand up for the profession we have built by taking a stand for flight attendants everywhere, in this country and around the world," Friend declared to board members at the opening of the board's annual meeting, in Pittsburgh.

Hey Patsy,

While you're up could ya get me a Diet Coke?

 

[Ty Webb]

Welcome to the new Millenium. Management doesn;t want long-term F/A's with longevity pay, and are doing their best to make it very unattractive to some of the senior F/A's (no pun intended).

I think this probably started with Jet Blue, but the others have caught on very quickly.

It's a gutsy move by the AFA. If the pilots had done this early on, it makes you wonder whether Legacy pilots would be working under reduced pay, or if it would have resulted in a "union-scale" rate where all airlines are paying the same rate for pilot labor, and therefore have to either raise fares or find the savings elsewhere.

 

[jhill]

Welcome to the new Millenium. Management doesn;t want long-term F/A's with longevity pay, and are doing their best to make it very unattractive to some of the senior F/A's (no pun intended).

I think this probably started with Jet Blue, but the others have caught on very quickly.

It's a gutsy move by the AFA. If the pilots had done this early on, it makes you wonder whether Legacy pilots would be working under reduced pay, or if it would have resulted in a "union-scale" rate where all airlines are paying the same rate for pilot labor, and therefore have to either raise fares or find the savings elsewhere.

Ty, you would make one he!! of a communist. I think you missed your calling. Try France. I hear they have a very active party.

 

[kelbill]

"Airline management needs to understand that there will be serious consequences if they persist in their attacks on our contracts."

Point well taken. HOWEVER, F/As at AFA better understand that there will be even greater consequences if they don't accept some major cuts in this time of teetering on bankruptcy for many of the majors. Don't expect a lot of kuddos from the folks at the unemployment office about how you stood on your principles instead of continuing to work for cut rates in a cut throat industry going through hard times. Management has truly been greatly to blame for the difficulties in the industry, let alone 9/11 and oil prices. But not 100%, and regardless, we live in the here and now, not the good old days.

Good luck to them, but I sure hope they don't strike.

 

[Propsfullfwd]

Not that it matters but Cal is IAM...

 

[Ty Webb]

Ty, you would make one he!! of a communist. I think you missed your calling. Try France. I hear they have a very active party.

Communist? You make me laugh. I'm talking about raising the bar, and declaring and end to pilot wages subsidizing poor management and seat-dumping.

Look, Chief, it's people with your mentality that have helped get into the very situation that the Legacy guys are in right now. . . . with AMR 757 pilots agreeing to work for less than AirTran 737 Captains!

If ALPA had gone the way of the AMA or the Bar Association, we could ALL be working for Delta pay. Instead, a bunch of pig-headed pilots think that their particular pilot group is somehow entitled to something different than the rest, which is great, right up until the point where your company goes out of business, and you start at the bottom.

Yeah, that's a smarter system.

 

[General Lee]

Most of the Delta stews could not walk the "strike line" for more than a few turns without sitting down and doing a crossword puzzle for at least 30 minutes to catch their breath.



Bye Bye--General Lee

 

[MW44]

You have to give the AFA some credit, finally a labor group really going to bat for their membership. The funny thing/sad thing is that in general the flight attendents have the least to lose yet their union seems to be the most vocal in fighting for their members. Maybe we could replace Alpa with the AFA....

 

[Dennis Miller]

Maybe we could replace Alpa with the AFA....

Have you grown an ovary?

 

[Dennis Miller]

Most of the Delta stews could not walk the "strike line" for more than a few turns without sitting down and doing a crossword puzzle for at least 30 minutes to catch their breath.



Bye Bye--General Lee

You're right General, not to mention the ones who would call in sick for the picket line. The rest could thwart access to the Terminal with an old west style wagon train, featuring copious beverage carts.

 

[jetexas]

Welcome to the new Millenium. Management doesn;t want long-term F/A's with longevity pay, and are doing their best to make it very unattractive to some of the senior F/A's (no pun intended).

Looks like they're doing the same thing to pilots too.

 

[vc10]

Except there's this little thing called the Railway Labor Act that's specifically designed, among other things, to prevent national strikes. As everyone here knows, a union can't strike except after going through the necessary steps... So it's hard to see how this is anything other than a meaningless gesture, perhaps meant mostly to placate the members who Want Something Done.

The market is merciless and right now all of airline labor is in the process of being marked-to-market, and what the market is saying (rightly or wrongly) is that it doesn't value flight attendant jobs very much.

You have to give the AFA some credit, finally a labor group really going to bat for their membership. The funny thing/sad thing is that in general the flight attendents have the least to lose yet their union seems to be the most vocal in fighting for their members. Maybe we could replace Alpa with the AFA....

 

[Ty Webb]

Except there's this little thing called the Railway Labor Act that's specifically designed, among other things, to prevent national strikes. As everyone here knows, a union can't strike except after going through the necessary steps... So it's hard to see how this is anything other than a meaningless gesture, perhaps meant mostly to placate the members who Want Something Done.

I think you're forgetting that the Companies are in court right now trying to circumvent to CBA's . . . if they get released from the CBA, I doubt the RLA will apply. In any event, this union is firing a shot across the bow, that's for sure.

 

[mad691]

Correct if I am wrong but didn't ALPA sympathize with IAM during the Eastern strike. Would that same logic apply here?

 

[schafjet]

Hey Patsy,

While you're up could ya get me a Diet Coke?

Classic, thanks for the laugh. Dennis would be proud.

 

[Ty Webb]

U.S. flight attendants union to start strike vote


Tue Nov 16, 2004 02:35 PM ET
CHICAGO, Nov 16 (Reuters) - The Association of Flight Attendants union said its leadership unanimously authorized a strike vote on Tuesday to begin immediately at bankrupt U.S. carriers, including UAL Corp.'s United Airlines (UALAQ.OB: Quote, Profile, Research) and US Airways Group Inc. (UAIRQ.OB: Quote, Profile, Research)
Voting is expected to take about two weeks. If a strike is approved by union members, flight attendants would be prepared to walk out in the event one of their contracts are abrogated.

 

[Resume Writer]

I find this move very interesting. Will there really be any bargaining power with the courts? That is the entity they are bargaining with now.

Something is going to have to give; maybe they need to dock all the management personnel for stupid decisions they have made. Perhaps the management people would owe the company money and have to work for free.
Kathy

 

[MetroSheriff]

"We will stand up for the profession we have built by taking a stand for flight attendants everywhere, in this country and around the world,"

Profession, huh??? So that is what you call it.

 

[MetroSheriff]

Most of the Delta stews could not walk the "strike line" for more than a few turns without sitting down and doing a crossword puzzle for at least 30 minutes to catch their breath.


Bye Bye--General Lee

General,

I think I found a solution to their picket line problem. They could save their energy and picket by proxy. The replacement picketers would likely be a little less saucy than some of those old broads.

http://www.vendweb.com/Used_Vending_Machines_For_Sale/Misc/Warehouse%20Vending%20Machines.jpg

 

[General Lee]

The Song "talent" or stews could walk the line, since they are younger, more fun, and sassy. (unlike any of the mainline stews)



Bye Bye--General Lee

 

[SWAInflt]

Profession, huh??? So that is what you call it.

Ouch. It's a given that we are neither splitting the atom nor curing cancer back in the cabin however, the majority of us do take the Safety and Customer Service aspects of our job seriously. I don't know that a nationwide strike is the answer but, like everyone else, we have bills to pay and families to raise. At least where I work, we work hard, do our part to help keep the operation running on time and in the middle of it all try to give the traveling public...such as it is...an experience they would be willing to pay for again.

 

[COpilot]

Hey VC10 your forgetting that with no CBA, to He!! with the RLA.

The union can do whatever it wants.

 

[Eagleflip]

Ty Webb wrote:

Welcome to the new Millenium. Management doesn;t want long-term F/A's with longevity pay, and are doing their best to make it very unattractive to some of the senior F/A's (no pun intended).

I think this probably started with Jet Blue, but the others have caught on very quickly.

Gee Ty...what did JetBlue management do to make this happen? We've had a full 12-year contract scale for our FAs for a year and a half or so...Before that, the wage structure went out for five years, just like the old pilot contract did.

 

[AFELLOWAVIATOR]

Except there's this little thing called the Railway Labor Act that's specifically designed, among other things, to prevent national strikes. As everyone here knows, a union can't strike except after going through the necessary steps... So it's hard to see how this is anything other than a meaningless gesture, perhaps meant mostly to placate the members who Want Something Done.

The market is merciless and right now all of airline labor is in the process of being marked-to-market, and what the market is saying (rightly or wrongly) is that it doesn't value flight attendant jobs very much.

they said if the judge abrogates the contract, then there is no more contract. If this is the case then they are free to strike. I agree.


They would essentially be quitting.

 

[vc10]

Maybe. But the issue is a "Nationwide" strike---that's basically impossible.

You'll also note that the first time a workforce votes to certify a union, there's also no CBA (because it has yet to be negotiated)---yet the new union chapter has no right to strike. So it's not a foregone conclusion that no CBA means no strike. In fact, the situation has never been tested.

Hey VC10 your forgetting that with no CBA, to He!! with the RLA.

The union can do whatever it wants.

 

[vc10]

Doesn't matter whether you agree. Matters whether a judge agrees.

they said if the judge abrogates the contract, then there is no more contract. If this is the case then they are free to strike. I agree.


They would essentially be quitting.

 

[densoo]

Ty, you would make one he!! of a communist. I think you missed your calling. Try France. I hear they have a very active party.

What happened to the capitalistic "what the market will bear"? It goes both ways. If labor says "we quit" and it folds the company, then the market has spoken. And it has said: "these executives mismanaged this company so badly that it is no more."

Nothing more, nothing less.

 

[Ty Webb]

Ty Webb wrote: Gee Ty...what did JetBlue management do to make this happen? We've had a full 12-year contract scale for our FAs for a year and a half or so...Before that, the wage structure went out for five years, just like the old pilot contract did.

Sorry, I wasn't aware that JB had changed from the five-year deal. I think Song (Delta's attempt at a lime-green shade of blue) has a five-year agreement with their F/A's. Regardless, with Delta closing the senior mama bases and AirTran refusing to settle their contract in a timely fashion, and UAL and USAirways trying to get out of the agreements . . . I can see why the AFA feels like management declared war against them in 2004.