Options Strong Union

[netjetwife]

.....voting period will run for 21 days, until March 2, 2006. ..... If by February 11 you have not received a card from the NMB PLEASE contact the organizing leadership so we can get you a card ASAP. As management has been so fond of stating, no call to the NMB is a no vote. If you believe in what we are trying to accomplish, then please make sure your voice is heard via your vote.

VOTE, Vote yes for the IBT 1108

Phoenix
I am...IBT1108
Pilots4Pilots

I do believe such a momentous announcement calls for a card of another type as well
Here's to the brighter future waiting for Options pilots and their families. Regards, NJW

http://www.jacquielawson.com/viewcard.asp?code=YN37496872

 

[Hawkered]

I would have to say that the union drive at FLOPS is almost complete. We need to get concentrating on Flexjet now!

 

[dime line]

Hawkered, and you know this how?

 

[Hawkered]

It will be a happy Spring for the FLOPs crews and for the Association of Shared Aircraft Pilots. www.ibt1108.org

For those at Flexjet, you can print out your own union card on-line at the Flexjet portion of our website. Just send or fax it in.

 

[netjetwife]

My thoughts have also been turning toward the Flex pilots and their families. I know that we keep saying they can follow the lead of the NJ group, but there may be some that will point out that the NJ pilots already had a union in place that just needed strengthened. To them I say, you're not as far behind as you think. The NJ pilots had to form their own local and build committees. In fact, they are still putting their StrongUnion plans in effect. However, if you identify more with the pilots from Options, their momentum should push your own card drive even closer to a successful outcome. If they can do it, you can too!

A RISING TIDE LIFTS ALL BOATS BUT PADDLING IS REQUIRED

1108--ADVICE YOU NEED TO LAND A FAIR/GOOD CONTRACT

 

[choppengruven]

Whoa guys

One vote at a time. Flops drive is not complete by a long shot. It will be over soon and if the recent morale boost is any gauge it will be successful. The organizers of the Flops drive then would be more than happy to consult with flex to teach them about the progress/mistakes we have made along the way. But lets slow it down and make this one successful first.

 

[Hawkered]

Chop'

Don't worry about the resources. We have resources! The truth is, you guys are starting to carry more and more of your own weight now that the election process is started. Aviation International News has a good article on Options' union drive right now.

We need to get everyone involved!

Let's not have a situation like Mesa Airlines is with the regionals: that one drags down all of the others!

Let's all get what we deserve. We are a resource that has not been properly remunerated for way too long.

 

[netjetwife]

The bar has been raised. All frac pilots should help put the supports under it that will keep it in place. There's no time like the present for making a change. Delay will only make your fight harder. There is a reason they say "Go with the flow"....it's easier that way! Think of the psychological advantage it gives you. After the NJ pilots' success, the managers of the other frac companies anticipated a move for their pilots to unionize. In other words, they see it as a foregone conclusion. Their union-busting activities and rhetoric just tells you how much they fear the collective strength you'll have.

 

[Hawkered]

Yeah, all those promises made and not kept. If it ain't in writing it doesn't exist guys. Let's get a standard, protected contract for everyone. Send in your cards and vote!

 

[Phoenix]

FOOC Weekly Announcement

Weekly Announcement for February 10, 2006

This Week’s Announcement brought to you by your Organizing Committee

In this issue: The VOTE ?
This Week’s Labor Academy: Weingarten Rights

The VOTE

On February 7 the National Mediation Board (NMB) mailed, to all eligible Flight Options Pilots, voting cards with voting instructions on the voting procedures, and identification information unique to each pilot. The voting period will be open until March 1 2006 with the final tabulation of the results announced on March 2. We encourage all of you to cast your vote ASAP during the voting period to ensure your voice is heard.

All of us, the pilots in the fleet, the P2P members, and the organizers, have worked hard to bring our desire for representation to a successful end. We only have a 21 day “window” to reach every Flight Options Pilot and ask for their support. Make sure that they did in fact receive a voting card. If a card was not received, put them in contact with one of the organizing leadership at [email protected]. Let us know as we can make an attempt to have every pilots vote count. Remember any pilot that does not place that call to the NMB is casting a NO vote. If that is the wish of a pilot, we respect his views and his choice. Also, if a pilot does support the IBT 1108, it is important that he/she has the opportunity to express his/her desires.

During the next few weeks emotions and tensions will run high as we talk to our fellow pilots about the vote. When talking to one another and asking them for their support remember, we will all still be Flight Options pilots regardless of the vote outcome.
We will still need to be the professionals we have always been and continue to provide the safety and service that our owners have come to appreciate from us.

We would ask each of you to contact 10 of your fellow pilots this week to ask for their support, ask them to call 10 of their friends, and those 10 to contact another 10, etc. If we can get just 10% of our supporters to do this, we will easily reach every pilot.

This Week’s Labor Academy: Weingarten Rights

What are the Weingarten Rights?

They are the rules under which our company management will be subject to when interviewing a pilot for any thing that the pilot feels might result in any sort of disciplinary action. They read;

Weingarten Rights

The United States Supreme Court ruled in 1975 , in the case of NLRB v. J. Weingarten, that employees have a right to union representation at investigatory interviews. These rights have become known as the Weingarten Rights.
During an investigatory interview, the Supreme Court ruled that the following rules apply:

RULE 1: The employee must make a clear request for union representation before or during the interview. The employee cannot be punished for making this request.

RULE 2: After the employee makes the request, the employer must choose from among three options. The Employer must either: grant the request and delay questioning until the union representative arrives and has a chance to consult privately with the employee; deny the request and end the interview immediately; or give the employee a choice of having the interview without representation or ending the interview.

RULE 3: If the employer denies the request for union representation, and continues to ask questions, it commits an unfair labor practice and the employee has a right to refuse to answer. The employer may not discipline the employee for such a refusal.

Additional Study; http://www.answers.com/The%20Weingarten%20Rights%20

These will become your rights following a successful vote on March 3.

These are the rights that management does not want you to have access to.

These are the rights that management fears because it prevents them from “at will” actions as a result or your refusal to accept illegal or unsafe direction from management.

The Weingarten Rights will give you the protection and power to refuse, with out worry of retribution, a request or demand made by management that you feel are against regulations, or are of an unsafe nature

Who will your representative be during these interviews or interrogations by management?

They will be your fellow pilots. Pilots that that have undergone extensive training on how to interact with you as the “pilot under siege” and with management. These pilots will be your stewards.

What is a Union Steward?

A steward is a Leader, a Diplomat, a Communicator, a Pilots Representative, a Organizer. He is the first line of defense for the pilots.

At this time you have 8 of you organizing leadership going through Steward Training with representatives of the IBT 1108. The initial training for this first class of Stewards will be completed a few weeks after a successful vote.

These 8 will become the first Flight Options Stewards.
In the coming weeks these men will be introduced to you along with contact information for your use any time you feel you are at risk with management.

Get to know these men seek them out as they are there to serve you. As a result, you will never have to face management alone again. There will be additional pilots trained in subsequent classes over the next year.

A steward is a very special position in our new union. It is a position should hold with pride. As a result should hold these men and women in high esteem.

FOOC
Pilots-4-Pilots