USAJet Unionized

[Xfr8dog]

Rumor has it that 80% of the pilots and mechanics have turned in thier union cards saying "yes" they would vote a union in. (This being the UAW) The paperwork has already been filed with the NLRB so it goes to vote in about 4-6 weeks.

For those of you who may not know USAJet operates DA-20's on demand under part 135 and DC-9's under part 121 also on demand. Recently we were approved for passenger ops on 2 DC-9s. I'd like to hear anyone chime in as to what they think a union can do for a company like ours.

I have always been very anti-union just on principle. I have never worked under a union and am just hoping that they dont screw up a great company.

 

[Spencer]

Exactly what "principle" are you referring to when you say you are very anti-union?

 

[pilotyip]

Teamsters Tried

Teamsters tried back in 1997, from what I had heard, I think ALPA got more write ins than the Teamsters got votes, and those combined did not equal the non-votes, alot of Ex Zantopers were not big supporters of the union effort. Nothing is a sure thing, except change, taxes, and death.

 

[GogglesPisano]

[
I have always been very anti-union just on principle. I have never worked under a union and am just hoping that they dont screw up a great company. [/B]

Haven't spent much time in the airline biz, I see.

 

[ExecJetCA]

Disregard Xfr8dog

Disregard Xfr8dog, I heard he is the resident *** guy at USA Jet. Xfr8dog you need to get out of this business and lay off the booze...A$$Hole.

 

[Spencer]

I'd like to make one thing clear. Bad business plans make or break a company, not unions. The company mentioned Zantop and Grand Aire. If you follow their logic that unions make or break the company then unions must be good. UPS, FEDEX, Airborne, Kalitta all have unions and are surviving and Reliant didn't have a union and failed. Kittyhawk went bankrupt but now they are ALPA and out of bankruptcy. The truth is unions force companies to adapt and change the way they treat employees. Poorly run companies will go out of business with or without a union.

 

[Xfr8dog]

Goggles that was pretty vague... i havent been in the industry long since i dont realize that unions are such wonderful things? or ... uh. clarify please?

ExecJetCA... HAHAHA. i didnt realize i'd made an enemy in the business. want to shoot me a PM and tell me who you are? Also what does the "resident *** guy" mean? geez you sound bitter!

I try to start a conversation about the possible pros and cons of a union at a company like USAJet and get no intelligent response (other than from PilotYip and Spencer) hmm. thanks anyway guys... i guess.

 

[goastar]

" I have never worked under a union and am just hoping that they dont screw up a great company."


80% of people don't usually turn in union cards if there is not a perceived problem.

If you change nothing in the operations or pay, it might be good to at least get some scope/ successorship language in the event your company ever decides to merge. You might want talk to an old Challenge air cargo guy what a scope/ successorship clause might have done for them when UPS purchased them and shove them out on the street.

I do believe that in the case of a union the good does out way the bad.

 

[Xfr8dog]

ok, can you tell me what scope/succesorship is? sounds kind of like a board game about mouthwash...

 

[pilotyip]

Union maybe, maybe not

A union is not the answer to every employees concern, if a union is voted in at USA Jet it may or may not be a good deal, look at the posts on this board with pilots complaining about how there union did this to them or did not support them on this issue. I have belonged to two union airlines as stated before and they never did anything for me except take money out of my pay check. Including my last check after the company announced it as going out of business. No help after the lay off in finding another job, no help in finding aditional training to help me get another job. After the shut down, Zantop eleted not to go out of busines and the Teamsters reopened their contract and gave the company so many consessions, that a 1st DA-20 Capt job at USA Jet paid more and had more days off than an Electra Capt in a union company. We have pilots talking about if we get a union we will have every holiday off at home like the office workers, wake up DAL, AA, UL all work on the holidays, senority dictates who gets what days off. When you bid senior F/O to jr Capt you go from good days off to a schedule that you get stuck with becasue it is left over, it was your choice to move seats, not something the company did to you. Look at the posts about ALPA over a Spirit, company ignoring the contract and doing kinda as it pleases, with the fillings against the company building up. Then there is the UAW who got a contract with the big three, no pay increase except lump sum, increase in medical co-pay, a go along to get along approach to keep collecting those dues. Watch out what you ask for, you may get it. In defense of unions 40 years ago they made changes in the workplace, like Medical, vision, dental, these have benefited all union and non-union employees alike. But the glory days are over, the only sector with union growth in the past 30 years in the Gov't sector, where they do not work with real money, they steal it from you with increased taxes, unlike the private sector where you have choice on where you spend your money. There must be a reason union membership is declining in the private sector