TonyC
Frederick's Happy Face
- Joined
- Oct 21, 2002
- Posts
- 3,050
On the Art of Negotiating
This has been an interesting thread for me to read. I see a smattering of factual data exchanged and examined, and a plethora of emotion tossed to and fro, and I see a lot of bravado in the form of "my Daddy's stronger than your Daddy" comparisons.
Remember, folks, the TA was negotiated by Mesaba's Negotiating team, made up of Mesaba pilots. They would not have agreed to send a TA to the MEC and then to the membership if they didn't feel it would have the support of the majority of the Mesaba pilots. They weren't trying to appease Mesa pilots, or Eagle pilots, or United pilots, or... well, you get the drift. The TA is for Mesaba pilots, and apparently, in the opinion of the Negotiating Team and the MEC (recall, the MEC is also made up of Mesaba pilots, not some group of Washington, D.C. heavies) the TA satisifies the needs of the pilots.
I'm not trying to say that automatically means the TA will pass. I just think you should try to keep this in perspective. Compared to current work rules, the PowerPoint presentation appears to ME to be an improvement. I'm not a Mesaba pilot, or a regional for that matter, so there's a lot I am surley missing, and I realize the road show slides are designed to highlight the improvements, so I'm not naive. I'm just saying what I observe - - it APPEARS to be a big improvement.
As for all these comparisons I'm seeing thrown about. First, you must surely realize that there's more to a contract than a PAY RATE. You could have a $150 per hour pay rate, but only get paid an hour a day. Then you could brag about your pay rate, but somebody else would beat you in the take-home column. Indeed, there's pay rates, rigs, schedules, days off, guarantees, overrides - - per diem rates - - bonuses - - all manner of animals that can affect not only your paycheck, but your quality of life. Don't underestimate the value of quality of life.
Second, you must resist the temptation to "cherry pick" the best provisions from every contract you see, and think you can combine them all into your contract. Sure, there may be a better reserve callout at Airline X, and a better Retirement Plan at Airline Y, and a better scheduling provision at Airline Z. It might be because the pilots at Airline Y were more focused on improving their retirement plans, and were willing to sacrifice more in the negotiations to get it. What Airlines X, Y, and Z were focused on improving and sacrificed to negotiate is really irrelevant to YOU and YOUR airline and YOUR contract. Mesaba's Negotiating Team negotaiated the TA based on the priorities of Mesaba pilots, not Airline X pilots or Airline Y pilots or Airline Z pilots.
So, Mesaba pilots - - search your heart to determine if it's what's right for your family, your airline, and your profession. If it raises the bar for all three, sufficiently in your estimation to make it possible for you to look at your ugly mug in the mirror each day without shame or remorse, vote accordingly. Don't be discouraged with all the "this part is better in their contract" detractions. Look at the TA as a whole - - the document that will determine your destiny in terms of lifestyle, pay, and security. That's all you get to vote on -- nothing else is on the table.
OK, now that I've spewed... can somebeody tell me what a "CDO" is?
This has been an interesting thread for me to read. I see a smattering of factual data exchanged and examined, and a plethora of emotion tossed to and fro, and I see a lot of bravado in the form of "my Daddy's stronger than your Daddy" comparisons.
Remember, folks, the TA was negotiated by Mesaba's Negotiating team, made up of Mesaba pilots. They would not have agreed to send a TA to the MEC and then to the membership if they didn't feel it would have the support of the majority of the Mesaba pilots. They weren't trying to appease Mesa pilots, or Eagle pilots, or United pilots, or... well, you get the drift. The TA is for Mesaba pilots, and apparently, in the opinion of the Negotiating Team and the MEC (recall, the MEC is also made up of Mesaba pilots, not some group of Washington, D.C. heavies) the TA satisifies the needs of the pilots.
I'm not trying to say that automatically means the TA will pass. I just think you should try to keep this in perspective. Compared to current work rules, the PowerPoint presentation appears to ME to be an improvement. I'm not a Mesaba pilot, or a regional for that matter, so there's a lot I am surley missing, and I realize the road show slides are designed to highlight the improvements, so I'm not naive. I'm just saying what I observe - - it APPEARS to be a big improvement.
As for all these comparisons I'm seeing thrown about. First, you must surely realize that there's more to a contract than a PAY RATE. You could have a $150 per hour pay rate, but only get paid an hour a day. Then you could brag about your pay rate, but somebody else would beat you in the take-home column. Indeed, there's pay rates, rigs, schedules, days off, guarantees, overrides - - per diem rates - - bonuses - - all manner of animals that can affect not only your paycheck, but your quality of life. Don't underestimate the value of quality of life.
Second, you must resist the temptation to "cherry pick" the best provisions from every contract you see, and think you can combine them all into your contract. Sure, there may be a better reserve callout at Airline X, and a better Retirement Plan at Airline Y, and a better scheduling provision at Airline Z. It might be because the pilots at Airline Y were more focused on improving their retirement plans, and were willing to sacrifice more in the negotiations to get it. What Airlines X, Y, and Z were focused on improving and sacrificed to negotiate is really irrelevant to YOU and YOUR airline and YOUR contract. Mesaba's Negotiating Team negotaiated the TA based on the priorities of Mesaba pilots, not Airline X pilots or Airline Y pilots or Airline Z pilots.
So, Mesaba pilots - - search your heart to determine if it's what's right for your family, your airline, and your profession. If it raises the bar for all three, sufficiently in your estimation to make it possible for you to look at your ugly mug in the mirror each day without shame or remorse, vote accordingly. Don't be discouraged with all the "this part is better in their contract" detractions. Look at the TA as a whole - - the document that will determine your destiny in terms of lifestyle, pay, and security. That's all you get to vote on -- nothing else is on the table.
OK, now that I've spewed... can somebeody tell me what a "CDO" is?
