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Union Vs. Contract Law Firm

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Poppa Hodax

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 29, 2004
Posts
85
Serious question -
What if a regional airline replaced their union with a law firm specializing in contracts, particularly aviation contracts? The regional could put the firm on retainer for the equivalent of union dues. The professional attorneys could negotiate the contracts. When a union member has a problem, he/she calls the attorneys, and if the Company was wrong, the Company pays the bill.
This would free up pilots to fly the line, and place professional litigators to deal with the Company lawyers. This would also remove the conflict of interest in having the same union represent a mainline company and its regional carriers.
 
This is essentially what ALPA Nat'l has in DC. Look into the background of the lawyers at Nat'l. It's pretty impressive.
 
Pardon my ignorance. Why would a contract negotiated by a law firm instead of a union lawyer fall outside the RLA?
 
Pardon my ignorance. Why would a contract negotiated by a law firm instead of a union lawyer fall outside the RLA?

the way I read his the premise (decertify the union) he proposed wouldn't exactly equate to an organized group. If your organization isn't legally recognized, no RLA enforcement.
 
Anything involving lawyers will always have loopholes and gotchas. It's how they make their living. I don't see how using non-ALPA lawyers would fix this problem.

People think that because pilots do the negotiating for their airline that somehow they're not competent. They've been trained by ALPA National, and there's at least one, usually two lawyers involved in the process. I don't see why I'd want to turn over my contract goals to a bunch of lawyers that are paid by the billable hour and have no incentive to get the deal done, not to mention that won't end up working under the finalized agreement.

As I understand, the Teamsters operate utilizing paid staffers, not pilot volunteers. I don't see many groups banging on the door to sign up for IBT747.
 
sweptback said:
As I understand, the Teamsters operate utilizing paid staffers, not pilot volunteers. I don't see many groups banging on the door to sign up for IBT747.

ALPA National has paid staffers, IPA has paid staffers, SWAPA has paid staffers, NPA has paid staffers.

There's something to be said about having professional negotiators available during negotiations; professional pilots will always be at a disadvantage when negotiating with professional labor attorneys like those employed by Ford & Harrison.
 
ALPA National has paid staffers, IPA has paid staffers, SWAPA has paid staffers, NPA has paid staffers.

There's something to be said about having professional negotiators available during negotiations; professional pilots will always be at a disadvantage when negotiating with professional labor attorneys like those employed by Ford & Harrison.

So the lawyers from your MEC and ALPA Nat'l aren't as professional in negotiations as the ones the company hires? If your MEC is just sending pilots in to negotiate (without ALPA lawyers), then you've got some serious issues.
 
The company is not required to follow the contract negotiated if it falls outside the RLA.

Don't know where you're getting your info but a bonifide contract would be upheld by state and federal laws. You should do some research. Every diehard union guy wants to tell us otherwise.
 
There's something to be said about having professional negotiators available during negotiations; professional pilots will always be at a disadvantage when negotiating with professional labor attorneys like those employed by Ford & Harrison.

Are you sure about that? What on earth do you call the ALPA attorney, E&FA specialist, etc. if not professional negotiators?

And, from what I've seen about F&H attorneys, I'm not too concerned. I've seen our puny little regional guys get the best of them several times.
 

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