US Airways MEC files lawsuit against AWA MEC

[737 Pylt]

I have jumped on East iron several times and found the majority of pilots to be intelligent decent human beings. The one time I had a problem was with an FO who was in the union. If he had said the things he said in the cockpit to me in a bar somewhere I would have broken him in half.

With what, your pocketbook???:laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

737

 

[PHXFLYR]

sadly, I think a few slimeballs in the union are running the shots at every MEC. The really sad thing is the pilot groups at these airlines continue to elect the same pathetic union reps.

That's because they are the only knuckleheads that step up and run for the various positions.No sane and rational person would,that's for sure.

PHXFLYR

 

[TWA Dude]

There's still two things I can't find: 1) a West pilot who says he wanted this merger, and 2) a West pilot who doesn't mind a fence.

Hmmm....why is that?

Quote from "The Sixth Sense": "People see what they want to see."

1) Whether we wanted the merger or not is irrelevant. Management makes these decisions and we have to deal with it.

2) I don't mind a fence. Drop the nuisance suit, drop the dump-ALPA campaign, accept the Nicolau Award and let's negotiate as equals through the JNC.

 

[TWA Dude]

Unfortunately, they were successful. It didn't end up helping the UAL guys since the merger never happened, but it still ended up screwing the AAA pilots in the end.

I've never gotten a satisfactory explanation to this question: if not getting a DOH integration "screws" the USAir pilots, why don't you lament how a DOH integration would've stapled over 2/3 of the AWA pilots?

ALPA Merger Policy simply demands that neither pilot group be unfairly advantaged. Obviously many disagree with Nicolau's decision but that's what often happens in binding arbitration. Putting DOH into ALPA policy directly contradicts the no-windfall clause. DOH may be a fair way to integrate or may not. Aside from pure selfishness, I truly don't understand the "DOH is the only fair way" mantra.

 

[PHXFLYR]

You had a chance a year and a half ago to negotiate a fence of some sort,but chose to push for a DOH intergration at the expense of everything else. Your negotation comittee gambled and loss. You now have to deal with it going forward. No fence. No how. Period . Deal with it.

PHXFLYR

 

[ultrarunner]

Today the East MEC filed a lawsuit against the AWA MEC in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia seeking to vacate the Nicolau Award.

Wouldn't you file suit agains Nicolau??? It' was his award, right?

WTF does the AWA MEC have to do with Nicolau's award? Both sides agreed to binding arbitration, right???

Seems like a good wast of money to me.

 

[PCL_128]

ALPA Merger Policy simply demands that neither pilot group be unfairly advantaged.

Don't you see that ALPA merger policy wasn't applied in that case? Don't you believe that you received an unfair advantage in this integration? Anyone in the West that claims they don't see that isn't being honest. Hundreds of East pilots will retire in the right seat having never upgraded, and meanwhile a bunch of young 90s hires at AWA will upgrade ahead of them. How is that not an unfair advantage?

Putting DOH into ALPA policy directly contradicts the no-windfall clause.

"Putting DOH into ALPA policy" isn't exactly accurate. Putting DOH back into merger policy is how it should be written. Until the UAL pilots fought to remove it, DOH was included in merger policy. The current policy is a relatively recent change.

 

[TWA Dude]

Don't you see that ALPA merger policy wasn't applied in that case?

TWA Dude writes:
No, I most certainly don't. The Policy states that Nicolau is the final decider. Disagreeing with his opinion doesn't mean Policy wasn't followed.

Don't you believe that you received an unfair advantage in this integration?

No, I most certainly don't. Why do you even bother asking?

Anyone in the West that claims they don't see that isn't being honest.

I'll accept that only if you accept that anyone in the East who claims DOH/LOS wouldn't be an unfair advantage to them is also being dishonest.

Hundreds of East pilots will retire in the right seat having never upgraded, and meanwhile a bunch of young 90s hires at AWA will upgrade ahead of them. How is that not an unfair advantage?

The disadvantaged AAA careers are a result of the company shrinking to almost half its size. You're misplacing blame. Why should our upgrades suffer unduly as a result of the merger? A fair integration shares the gains and pains.

"Putting DOH into ALPA policy" isn't exactly accurate. Putting DOH back into merger policy is how it should be written. Until the UAL pilots fought to remove it, DOH was included in merger policy.

You're right, DOH used to be there. Also, the industry used to be regulated, mergers use to be between two fairly old carriers, and carriers used to be much smaller. The industry changed and so did merger policy.

The current policy is a relatively recent change.

I believe DOH was removed from ALPA Policy in the early 90's. I wouldn't call that very recent.

Bottom lines:

The AWA pilots were given access to the daily arbitration hearing transcripts. The USA pilots weren't. Why not? Nicolau said some things the East pilots really needed to hear. For some reason the East pilots were led down a primrose path that DOH/LOS was somehow achievable. My understanding is that the East MC was told to fight for DOH/LOS or face recall. Hardly a realistic way to conduct a negotiation.

It's pointless to debate the merits of this method of integration or that now. Our sides debated for a year and a half. We both played by the rules and the arbitrator rendered his decision. Now, the East is trying to extort concessions from the West and that's despicable. It makes a mockery of due-process.

 

[Ace McCoy]

Hundreds of East pilots will retire in the right seat having never upgraded, and meanwhile a bunch of young 90s hires at AWA will upgrade ahead of them. How is that not an unfair advantage?

I don't understand. Wouldn't those guys have retired from the right seat without the merger?

So what's the difference now?

 

[ferlo]

It’ really unbelievable. What does the East really think? By filing a lawsuit that will drag on for years that they can stiff arm the process?

The suit will be thrown out inside of a few weeks, It won't drag on at all.