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FDX Union Business and the Monitored App. Concept

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FDX Union Business and the Monitored App. Concept

Old 11-05-2008, 02:23 PM
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Default FDX Union Business and the Monitored App. Concept

UNION BUSINESS AND THE MONITORED APPROACH CONCEPT

Ladies and Gentlemen:

Since the spirit of change seems to be in the air today, especially in light of the Chairman’s last email concerning the internal challenges we face as a Union, I am going to go out on a limb here and suggest a possible solution, which even if proven unfeasible or too difficult, at least offers a hopeful mindset that refutes defeatism and embraces the idea of doing things in a smarter, better way.

THE PROBLEM AS I SEE IT.

There seems to be the perception among many pilots, myself included, of a broad disconnect between what we the electorate (rank and file pilots) see as concerns and what our elected officials (the MEC) see as the solution and as such, I offer the following idea as a way to possibly bring the two back together. If you are like me, you are tired of hearing about the endless political dog fighting and the promise of better days ahead. It doesn’t seem to make any difference who the players are; the same old problems seem to always rear their ugly heads. In my view, the problem is indicative of a more basic, fundamental problem, one of structure. So, if you want positive action, if you want to stop repeating the same mistakes over and over again, then perhaps we need to look at the design of our Union and simply put, build it better. Why can’t we build a system that is more responsive to pilot concerns, one that gives our Reps better tools from which to gauge our sentiments and yet one still allows the Rep a certain degree of latitude from which to govern? If we can do this, quite simply, it gives us a better shot at getting it right the first time and avoiding costly mistakes. Maybe the old way of doing things, with our Reps locked in some Vegas hotel conference room have become passé or at the least, too controversial given the more immediate tasks at hand? We live in a computer driven, web based world, where people are much better informed about the issues, or at least have better tools in which to become and remain so? So why not tap into this resource in a creative and productive way?

As it stands now, we have two fundamentally separate things that don’t necessarily properly compliment one another. We have polling and we have voting and most would agree that often there seems to be a big disconnect between the two. The problem with polling comes down to one of confidence. Many have suggested, as evidenced by this discussion, that it is precisely this disconnect which contributes to a lack of faith in the credibility of the data produced. Some on the other hand have argued that the data can be skewed by asking questions specifically designed to elicit specific responses and still others fear the data, while reliable, can be tossed aside by a not so conscientious Rep without any fear of accountability, aside of course from the possibility of recall/re-election, which in the case of recall we know is purposely designed to be especially difficult and as for reelection, lets face it…..by then, the damage is done. So again, it is delayed accountability at best and using the corporate world as an example, I don’t feel much better when a wayward CEO gets the boot…along with a multimillion dollar golden parachute. Plainly put, there is too much at stake. There must be a better way.

Now let’s take a look at voting. With voting, the problem is simple. We typically vote only for elections and for ratification……..and as we all know from experience………a lot happens in the middle between those two events. Yes, it seems to be the “in-between” that is our biggest problem.

Therefore, given all of the above, why don’t we research the possibility of developing a FDX ALPA specific (no national involvement) voting system that essentially combines the two concepts in a reliable way, where we can better track performance and ensure accountability? Sure, it would require greater participation, but I contend the primary reason for the lack of participation in our process (voter apathy) has more to do with feelings of frustration, than a lack of a desire to participate. It seems like in our current structure today, if you speak out against the status quo, expect to be bloodied. Case in point, my last few posts have not exactly elicited a positive response from our MEC (although, to their credit, there are a growing number of exceptions within the MEC, which is not the case unfortunately with it’s officers), but on the other hand, I have received overwhelming support from the Joe and Jane pilots out there who are frustrated and angry over the apparent lack of responsiveness on the part of the MEC. What some in the MEC have yet to grasp, is that an outspoken electorate is good for the process and that stifling dissent and marching in false lockstep, where we sweep problems under the rug, fools no one in the long run, not the company and certainly, not the pilots.. You give a pilot direct, genuine input into his or her pay and work rules and watch what happens. Yes, my friends, “we fly the heavy metal, we can handle the truth”.

I realize some of you might be asking yourselves if this would undermine our Representative system of governance. Well, these types of specifics would be better addressed by a dedicated working group of pilots, specifically tasked with doing the research, but off the cuff, I would say no, absolutely not, in fact it should enhance it. We could design the system with certain, tailor made safeguards upon which we all agree, some of which I will address shortly. I am not advocating doing entirely away with our representative form of governance, for that would require a very informed electorate and be too tedious and besides, I am not interested in voting on the color of the walls in the office, but on the big issues, you bet I am interested. Again, with the proper safeguards in place it begs the question; could we do much worse? Most pilots are pretty independent types, accustomed to accepting responsibility for their own errors and I truly believe that most could live with a mistake and learn from it, if they were assured that what they say truly mattered. I contend if properly designed, the system would not be a substitute for your Rep, on the contrary, it would just be another tool to use, providing timely information to assist in making informed decisions. More importantly, it gives us the electorate, accountability and accountability gives us greater faith in one another and in the system. This is where the tie in with the Monitored Approach Concept, of which we are all familiar, comes in play. Throwing the autopilot and flight director on during approach is not enough, intelligence and sophistication in its use, along with a Master Monitor is……….Threat and Error Management on a grander scale if you will.

As for some of the possible safeguards, again a matter for much deeper research, but a possible suggestion might be to build the system to allow certain latitude upon which the Rep could use the information in accordance with a fixed or flexible set of parameters based on voting participation percentages. For instance, if voting participation exceeds ….say 2/3rds, your Rep would be obligated to vote in accordance with the numbers. On the other hand, if voting fell below those numbers, your Rep could be allowed greater latitude with which to make the call based on his judgment. If new information were to pop up at the last minute, we could build in a few stop gaps measures to deal with the situation as well. In this age of email and email alerts, I don’t see it as such a big problem that can’t be overcome.

Folks in all honesty, without a thorough investigation into the possibilities, I would prefer to hold all of my opinions, but I have a sense, with all the technology we have at our disposal, we can do better than what we are doing now.

The benefits I can see right off the bat, just to name a few:

The big one…..Voter empowerment.

Direct encouragement of the electorate to get involved and stay informed and knowing that their vote truly counts. Accountability for the voter to participate is inherent here as well.

Gives the Rep a clear way to keep his finger on the pulse of the group and a responsibility to ensure his constituents are informed on the issues. He would received reliable, verifiable information. Having it tied to participation would give us direct evidence of his or her accountability to us.

Cost savings. Smaller government or better, more efficient government. Since no one will tell me how much we spend on the Wilson Center Polls, (another glaring problem in itself, which also begs the question as to why, since we all contribute dues to this effort, we are precluded from knowing how our money is spent), but alas, this only strengthens my argument that something is broke and we need to fix it. The power comes from us, not the other way around. Think about how much time and money in Flight pay loss we could save by eliminating the fat and streamlining the process? I prefer to see my rep out there hub turning with me, asking me how I feel about the issues rather than guessing or assuming and shooting from the hip, no matter how pure the intention. Right now, many of us feel like we have to jump through hoops to ask a reasonable question and woe anyone if you speak out of turn or speak out about something the MEC finds ……….well, irritating. I think it is time to say to the MEC; too bad, we’re all too damn tired to jump anymore. This time….why don’t you jump? We voted, it’s our dues money, we paid for a ticket on this ride we are entitled to speak our minds in any manner we see fit. You can’t on one hand stifle the debate from within and then judge us harshly when we seek other forms of expression. It is our right and more specifically our duty to speak out as good union members. I will make you a deal, we will support you, but first, you have to support us!

In closing, if this idea is again found to not be feasible at this time, I am all ears as to a better suggestion. Anything is better than more of the same. Perhaps we could start off slow, using the system in a test mode, only in matters of lesser importance until we work out all the kinks?

As for me though….the first test I would like to see and I can’t believe I am saying this, is a vote on whether or not we should investigate a return to a general vote among the membership for all the MEC Officers, in the same way we did in FPA. I don’t honestly know if that would be an allowed revision to the C&B, but didn’t we get the Block Rep change, so why not this? Biggest dues contributor in all of ALPA you say? I don’t see a problem.

Folks, we have a great many intelligent pilots, brilliant people, computer techies, whom I am sure would love to sink their teeth and their pocket protectors (sorry, couldn’t resist) into this problem. (I have a few names to suggest right off the top of my head) So, I say we move this union into the future? Are you with me? Again, if this is idea is found to not be viable, I say we keep looking, because the end result is worth every effort.

So before you give up and resign yourself to voter apathy, remember the words of George Bernard Shaw: SOME MEN SEE THINGS AS THEY ARE AND ASK WHY. OTHERS DREAM THINGS THAT NEVER WERE AND ASK WHY NOT.

Fraternally,
Joe DePete
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Old 11-05-2008, 02:58 PM
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Nice food for thought Joe, great ideas worth exploring. Thanks for taking the time to share your opinion.

PT
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