Originally Posted by
Packrat
Hopefully, the Airline Division is serious. However, in the past, they've only proven to be really serious about collecting dues. Hopefully, all this Internet strike talk is more than a couple guys' bluster.
When it all comes down to it will your pilot group fold like a house of cards in a tornado? That's the honest question you have to ask yourselves. Do you have enough of a majority who are willing to walk the walk and not just talk the talk. How deep are your personal pockets vs. Allegiant's?
On top of all that, how long will it be before you're even released to self-help.
All good questions Pack.
Given IBT's Upfront investment in legal fees, court costs, and negotiations, all without collecting a cent, it's safe to say they're serious. So far, They have been very helpful and supportive of our efforts.
Pilots here are not only willing to strike, they are eager to do it. I would venture to say that a sizable percentage would rather strike before signing a contract, just to teach MG a lesson. He has never dealt with a militant/unified/committed pilot group and his mistakes are a result of his arrogant/dismissive behavior.
Although I cannot attest to the depth of every pilot's pocket, keep in mind that, unlike traditional carriers, ALGT is a
travel company. In addition to obvious implications with the stock price, their business model is highly dependent on the ancillary revenue generated through internal customers. Hotels, rental car agencies, entertainment venues, etc. would come demanding restitution the minute their customers suddenly dried up. These are very Fragile, mutually dependent relationships that cannot withstand a protracted strike. It would take years to recover from the damage.
How long before we are released? It's unknown, but realize that ALGT is a small leisure carrier. Relative to larger airlines that carry huge implications to commerce and business travelers, ALGT's shutdown represents a much smaller impact and the NMB knows it. Their reputation with the NMB precedes them from their experience with the flight attendants. It's also safe to say ALGT has ****ed off the NMB and every other acronym in the US government (DOT, DoD, DOJ, FAA, NTSB). Others include Federal and State Labor Departments, Better Business Bureaus, employees, customers, and media. Outside of Wall Street, ALGT has no friends. The ValuJet findings and the alarming similarities to ALGT have many agencies looking to make an example out of MG and AL. The NMB has reportedly stressed the need to accelerate the mediation process, presumably as they're as tired of ALGT as everyone else and would like to see this process quickly reach its logical conclusion: strike