Teamsters denied pilot release by NMB

[Flying Illini]

.....people are running for the exits at Republic......Time for a new union

As the majors start to hire, the angriest folks will leave and the angriest FO's will upgrade. Life improves for many and the unhappiness returns to fester underground.

 

[fam62c]

You guys used to blame Bush for the "lousy bought-n-paid-for" NMB. Whose fault is it now?

Neither party likes airline strikes because they are unpopular with the voting public. Unions don't have the political clout they once had with union membership at such low levels. Politicians don't need to cater to unions anymore, being supportive of unions may cost them more votes than they gain. let's face it, even with average working people today "union" has increasingly become a dirty word. Maybe someday the pendulum will swing back the other way and unions will rise again but for now they are on the decline and politicians bend with the wind.

If Republic was not tied to large, legacy airlines they might get released but as it stands now they are too woven into the overall system to be allowed to stop operating. I may be wrong but I will believe it when I see it. The government has nothing to lose by just having mediation last forever, nobody has to make a politically unpopular decision that way so nobody can get blamed. Why take the risk of inconveniencing the voting public when it might blow back on you if you don't have to? If you are a politician in today's political climate that's a no-brainer.