Originally Posted by
SewerPipeDvr
I am not trying to pick on you or anything this fine morning but I am just trying to give you an outsiders view with a legal background (I also do not intend to get in the ****ing matches on here). I must disagree with your statement above. APA does indeed have a vested interest. NIC might (or might not) be dead but the possible damages not only to the West but to any East pilot are still floating around for a couple more years. APA will inherit any damages claim. If ANY USAPA pilot files a damages claim due to USAPA failing to fulfill their contracted duties (union promises of pay/QOL improvements) for any reason (like proving no contract improvement due to blocking the NIC) APA will be on the receiving end of the lawsuit. If a single case is won it will open the floodgate and they (APA) will file bankruptcy. So they legally have a really big interest in how this goes down. They will not allow USAPA to be a party as they will be the CBA, as is their right. They WON'T have it a one way street for themselves. Nasty arbitrators won't play that game. US Airways pilots will represent themselves both East and West. I expect APA to ask the East pilots to submit names for approval. I don't think they will accept any current USAPA officers. I believe APA will allow the West voice (as opposed to a single NC with three East and three West) again asking them to submit names for approval. Does not mean they will win anything but it will deflate future legal risk. Judge Silver did not end the West legal claims, she really did just kick the can down the road into the future. Not ripe, yet.
I believe this will be similar to the UAL/CAL integration. APA brings much more to this (it was only a strategic bankruptcy after all- big difference there) than USAir. They will get the UAL role and your group will end up like CAL. Because your group is so fragmented that will just be part of the price you pay for the last however many years this fight has been ongoing. Arbitration was started just for this purpose. There is no way any group involved directly in this can be rational and fair. It must be judged by outsiders. Accept and move on. There will be no delay after MB. Arbitration rules are firm and have a very high standard to overturn. Nearly impossible.
I think this post accurately sums up the situation. Without question, the APA would benefit from having an equal west voice in front of the arbitrators to spend more time arguing with the east over a SLI that happened seven years ago. (One of the only times in life where two against one isn't a good thing!) The worst thing for the APA would be for the US side to be united in the SLI talks, however even then, this isn't much of a threat because the east pilots voted for the MOU, the MOU dictates USAPA will not be around much longer. APA will finish the SLI (under the threat of a DFR) just like USAPA was attempting to do with the DOH cram down with the west. It seems the APA is very much aware of the DFR threat (especially with the Nicolau hanging out there, somewhere) and will act accordingly to protect the mother ship. I believe Ed James wouldn't have taken on this stance against USAPA without carefully considering the best moves for the APA going forward. By having a divided US group, being in control of the union plus the synopsis presented above by Sewer, it seems the US pilots have the deck stacked against them. But, the east pilots did it to themselves. They fought the Nic all these years, they terminally divided the US pilot group and they voted for the MOU- got big pay raises but now it is time to pay the piper for agreeing to the MOU.