Originally Posted by
baseball
I was incorrect about the date. Getting old.
However, everything is factually correct about ALPA wanting IACP. But, if you read between the lines, ALPA wanted more than IACP. It wanted the CAL pilot group back under the fold. There was really no opportunity to do this after the 83 strike that broke ALPA. I don't see how ALPA could have done it until the IACP was formed.
One thing a union needs to form is union organizers working on the inside. The IACP leadership (original plus second cadre) worked tirelessly to build unity and cohesion amongst the pilot group to get not one, but two contracts. After IACP proved it could be effective, I think that got ALPA's attention that there were grass roots organizers and unionists on property that a push to bring CAL pilots back to ALPA could be done with minimal cost to ALPA. Since IACP was amassing a considerable war chest for what we predicted would be a huge contract battle for contract '02, ALPA looked at the dollars and cents of it and decided it was a wise financial decision.
There were only a handful of IACP leaders that looked favorably upon the ALPA agenda and thought it a good idea to pursue. It was the younger, what I call, second cadre of IACP leadership and the current and former Express pilots that thought ALPA would be effective and a good fit.
The Scabs were indeed promised "forgiveness" as a way to buy their votes. The same folks who were super active in IACP were still super active in the new CAL-MEC/ALPA after the merger of the two bargaining units.
You keep repeating the CAL Unionism according to BB. You fail to see the big picture. Why do you think ALPA National installed Prater as head of the organization. - Hint: even though CAL was allowed back into ALPA they continued to act as if it was 83’ with management and scabs controlling the union. Over a lot of heartburn, National installed Prater as president to hopefully straighten it out. He didn’t, instead, he choose to promote a campaign for SCAB acceptance.
Why do you think JP continued to work with JS undermining UAL ALPA during integration. The combined unions spent all negotiating capital correcting inadequacy in the CAL contract and JP self promotion. The closes any union at CAL, post 83, came to being a real Union was in name only.
This continue well past integration when the IAH LEC Rep went to management to negotiate a special seniority carve out for CAL guys in IAH contrary to contract provisions - he was shot down. He, BS is a standup guy that unfortunately got schooled in the CAL form of unionism and didn’t catch the changes that were happening to bring CAL through UAL to the mainstream.