….but unfortunately not from anyone’s postings on this web forum (yet.)

Long time lurker….first time poster….sorry for the lengthy post……I felt the need, and hope this helps put some perspective out there……bear with me…

A lot of you (like me) who have had questions and serious doubts and fears as to why the questions were going unanswered – fear no more!

I have finally gotten some answers to my questions both from ALPA and FedEx – unfortunately not from anything posted on this web forum - unbelievable, I know……but first a little background….

To quote a funny movie – “What we have here, gentlemen, is a failure to communicate” (I think that’s the quote, but don’t quote me – you get the idea)

“Hello, ALPA (via email of course because I don’t really want to actually have a personal conversation with someone I really don’t know all that well – let’s just keep it professional and email instead)…..uh…….dudes……I got a lot of serious questions on this LOA here……”

…..chirp……chirp…..(sound of crickets)…….no answers…….right?

OK…. I’m not even gonna call the Company boys with my questions – after all, they’re the enemy and probably out to screw me somehow – if I could just figure out how?? – but I know they won’t shoot straight with me. Probably shouldn’t even send in my questions on that form the Company set up either – ‘cause then they’ll know my personal thoughts and hold them against me some day some how (yes, I actually think/thought this) maybe even start a dossier on me to pull out during the hearing that will inevitably come some day. Besides, going to the Company for answers is like being a traitor to ALPA – after all, my negotiating committee speaks for me, don’t they?

So…..the web forums….surely THEY’LL have some answers for me right? So, I’ve poured over them every day and night hoping that someone will post some definitive answers to all these questions I have, right?......well…….you be the judge of how many definitive answers (aka facts) you’ve gotten on this LOA from this forum. What I have found here (besides a lot of good entertaining comments – and a few funny jokes) are a lot of opinions, and a few facts, but for the most part just a lot of emotion (like I have a lot of times) clouding peoples’ logical thought processes.


Anyhow…..for all you out there, like me, whose questions over this LOA seemed to have fallen on deaf ears (at the union AND at the company) – good news!! The questions are finally starting to get answered.

FINALLY…..after 2+ weeks of waiting and hearing nothing, my MEC and LEC reps (MEC Sec-Treas. and LEC Pres.) responded with detailed answers to every question that I had sent in – and the MEC guy emailed me back and forth several times actually getting back to me on a follow-up answer that he had to research – I was on a trip to Asia, so that was my excuse for not picking up the phone and calling these guys – even though they both offered to answer my questions over the phone (and I could have easily Skyped them, but that was my excuse not to call – I’m on a trip in Asia, can’t call, better to email.)

Then, coincidentally, this thread pops up and Captain Kelly posts his comments the same day that I finally get a reply from my LEC rep via email.

So, I take Captain Kelly up on his offer to call him with my questions. I mentioned that I had read his post on the internet, and he was very cordial and professional over the phone (I couldn’t tell if the conversation was being recorded or not, but he didn’t say that it was) He actually was silent while I posed my questions (I thought the line had gone dead several times – turns out he was actually just listening to me) and, then answered the questions that I had, and said he’d call me back the next day with answers to the ones he couldn’t handle (didn’t know the answers to) right then. He actually called me back (great now he knows my phone number – I’m really screwed) and answered the rest of my questions.

BTW - he ended the conversation by telling me that I had been the only person who had called and/or emailed him after his posting on this site. I guess, maybe he thinks we don’t want to actually call anyone to get answers – we’d rather just belly-ache in anonymity? Who knows?

In summary – the questions are being answered. I guess you just have to ask the right people and be patient – we’re all pretty busy these days I guess.

FWIW.