Originally Posted by
Packrat
No they don't. They supply an ALPA professional to monitor and advise at all contract negotiations. You do, however, have to have members of the Negotiating Committee who are will to listen to and follow their advice.
That's why I just laugh whenever anyone says, "We need professional negotiators." That illustrates a basic misunderstanding of how the ALPA system works.
I agree, ALPA does have the so called "professionals" who sit in during negotiations. Each one of these "professionals" specialize in an area(s) like retirement, pay, vacation, R&I and other sections of the contract. In many ways than one, the negotiating committee is just another ALPO National's puppet and definitely not up to par for the task.
Let's think about this, shall we? Alaskan is a tiny little legacy/major airline-I believe approximately 6 to 8% ASM. ALPO national does not, will not, does not wish to spend much of its assets and manpower ($$$ really) for such a small pilot group; it's not very cost effective. They'd rather focus on the bigger guys (DAL & UAL), again, for the mighty $. At the end of the day, sadly it's all about the $$$ in THEIR pockets. Sooner they can get the pilot group to settle, the sooner and more money ALPO gets. This "time value money" bs that they like to throw around.....it's really about them.
Our negotiating committee consists of your average line pilots who are voted in my the MEC. They may or may not have any union experience but that's of little importance. They receive a couple of weeks of training in Virginia. They are accompanied by so called ALPO "professionals" during negotiations. They thump their chest and start out strong. They send out surveys/polls that are fixed to a very weak and uneducated pilot group. Intentionally uneducated? Perhaps. They sit across from company negotiators who are accompanied by their professional negotiators & labor lawyers, who are highly paid "guns for hire". Let's think about this for a second. You take a highly motivated, highly intelligent, over achiever who attends a top tier law school (most likely an Ivy league) and finishes in the top 10%. This person WILL get recruited by multiple top law firms making huge coin. I highly doubt that this individual will settle to work for ALPO making 5 figures. Meet the company's hired guns. Can you say Ford & Harrison? Then, you have your mediocre ALPO "professional" and lawyers, who make fraction of what the company's hired guns make. Who do you think will prevail? Who has better motivation to win? Better yet, who's got the bigger gun? Yeah, money talks!
The company is smart and they have the assets to kick our a$$, anytime anywhere. The pilot group carries a .22 revolver and the company shows up with a 30mm gatling gun. Instead of doing what they are paid to do and spend our dues wisely, ALPO blows their "unaccounted" money on boos and fancy 5 star multi-course meals. Sound familiar? They are all talk, no substance-very much like our government and diluted corrupt corporations. Yeah, I'd say they have lost their way. ALPO national knows that they are beat so they offer up the pilot group as a living sacrifice and as always, give into the company. Tired and burned out from being outmatched and outwitted, the negotiating committee throws in the towel and do their darnest to sell the TA. When asked those tough questions at the road shows, they start foaming around the mouth and start turning blue in the face.
The last line of defense is the pilot group. Obviously, the "ALPA system" that you are referring to is not working. If ALPO can't get it together and shine when EVERYTHING was/is in our favor, how's it going to work when the real $hit hits the fan? Unless things change, history will certainly repeat itself.