Translation: IPA was put into the penalty box by D.C.
They will be made to wait awhile in the hopes of softening their position. Delay in no way hurts the company. If they wanted to squeeze UPS they would have scheduled alot more sessions.
My own feeling is IPA's timing on this was about 30-35 days too late. Had the strike talk in the press been ramped up earlier and been a little more aggressive, then it might have been a more effective 'bookaway campaign'. But with the deadline being almost at Christmas it had no teeth and everyone knew it....the only opinions that matter are shippers and management. I understand why IPA was conservative. A bookaway is a scorched earth policy that is dangerous if it taken too far and there was also the risk of pi$$ing off the mediator. But this opportunity was sissyfied to the point that there was no chance of getting a deal before Christmas.
Either the pilots will have to turn up the heat to entice the company to settle or just wait until the company feels there is an economic benefit to signing a deal (i.e. converting a variable to fixed cost or UPS/FDX finishing before the other to gain service stability in the minds of their customer base.)
They will be made to wait awhile in the hopes of softening their position. Delay in no way hurts the company. If they wanted to squeeze UPS they would have scheduled alot more sessions.
My own feeling is IPA's timing on this was about 30-35 days too late. Had the strike talk in the press been ramped up earlier and been a little more aggressive, then it might have been a more effective 'bookaway campaign'. But with the deadline being almost at Christmas it had no teeth and everyone knew it....the only opinions that matter are shippers and management. I understand why IPA was conservative. A bookaway is a scorched earth policy that is dangerous if it taken too far and there was also the risk of pi$$ing off the mediator. But this opportunity was sissyfied to the point that there was no chance of getting a deal before Christmas.
Either the pilots will have to turn up the heat to entice the company to settle or just wait until the company feels there is an economic benefit to signing a deal (i.e. converting a variable to fixed cost or UPS/FDX finishing before the other to gain service stability in the minds of their customer base.)
