ALPA does work at Mesa. Had it not been for ALPA, your job would have been outsourced to Freedumb a long time ago. ALPA had to spend negotiating capital to protect your job with scope, and the other sections of the agreement had to suffer to "buy" that scope language.
Maybe. Maybe not. Frankly, I think the Freedom "threat" could have been handled in so many better ways. The single carrier petition could have been played out. Or it could have been a rallying point to galvanize the pilots to a strike (and 50 Freedom pilots were not going to replace 1200 Mesa ones). And so forth.
It's a terrible example anyway, because ultimately, Mesa pilots took a concessionary contract at a profitable company and were told "Like it, because it's the best we can do. We can't help it if were were outsmarted and outmaneuvered."
If that's the best ALPA has to offer . . . well, why should Mesa pilots think they're not going to get outmaneuvered AGAIN every 5-7 years?
The blame for this rests with the current bankruptcy laws. The 1113(c) bankruptcy process is heavily weighted in favor of management, and there are no protections for employee pension plans. There simply wasn't enough negotiating leverage to keep the pensions during concessionary bargaining.
Doing so would be a waste of negotiating capital. The pensions would simply be at risk again the next time an airline files for Chapter 11.
The ultimate responsibility of pension loss lays not on ALPA but on BK laws is absolutely correct. However, how can you say that bargaining for them back is a waste of neg capital? Certainly those who saw their pensions drop to nothing would disagree. It WOULD be a waste to current pilots, and certainly to ALPA's coffers and hundreds of guys making +$100k ALPA salaries . . .but what's more important?
Those who worked for decades and contributed millions but now have no voice or ability to ply their trade? Or current pilots who can easily say "tsk tsk, what a shame" then bargain for raises?
Personally, I think ALPA has a moral imperative to recapture at least SOME of what was owed to the retirees. Clearly, we disagree.
At least we've disagreed civilly. A flightinfo first!