Originally Posted by
sweetholyjesus
Thanks for your input. So, basically our political lobbying power is greater as an association, but we're on our own when it comes to negotiating contracts etc. I just don't see how an association of unions (unions being created for an entirely different purpose) can be so weak and divided when it comes to negotiating. But if advocating safety is their main (and basically, only) function then boy, they sure do take and spend a lot of money to have a voice on capitol hill..
It's not the only thing but a big part of it. Like it's been said, ALPA is not really ONE union. It's an association of separate unions. Each individual MEC decides what they want or don't want to negotiate for. As for lobbying, the bigger the association, the more influence they exert. That's what there are associations of almost everything special interest you can think of. And corporations hire K street lobbyist in order to exert their influence as well. Without ALPA, things would be way worse just because of this alone!