With all due respect, I do believe that having over 2000 frac pilots willing to walk....strike...for a better contract did just recently impact the industry. Currently more pilots are in the process of telling managers "NO" we aren't willing to put up with this any longer. The tide has shifted and I've been watching it happen..from the inside. This is a current event that I understand quite well.
I do agree that more is needed than just the framework of a union. Leverage only works if it's applied. Voices are only heard when raised in chorus--loud and strong. That is the only common ground we share. It is my contention that frac pilots don't have to walk away to make a difference. Standing united in their demands for professional treatment and pay, can, and does, make a huge difference.
Runner, (BTW, is that a reflection of your attitude?) your solution to the problem is based on one response that is too slow, relies on too uncontrollable of an environment (market place), and is not guaranteed to bring the needed results. Walking away is not the answer. Standing united (it's the will that counts, not the word) sends a clear message that conditions must be changed. The pilots will see faster results because they will apply leverage to a controlled environment (their own frac company) with organized efforts that will yield a good/fair contract. How can you ask the pilots in a company to bide their time waiting for the vagaries of the economy and the decisions of new hires? There is no justice in that.
FRACTIONAL FAMILIES HAVE WAITED LONG ENOUGH--IT'S TIME TO TAKE A STAND