Originally Posted by
Wheelswatch
I truly appreciate the tone of your post.
My problem is that if the MEC really wants us to vote it down, they should vote it down. Because by sending it out they are communicating to us that they have no more fight in them.
And if they work for us, why didn't they listen to us? For months, they repeated back to us what we wanted and didn't want. We knew, that they knew, what was expected.
If classes were drying up, the NC/MEC should have maximized this leverage at the table, not by some threat of a membership 'no' vote which may or may not happen. Besides the cat is now out of the bag, trying to unring a bell is orders of magnitude harder than exercising the leverage where and when you had it.
I disagree.
We, that is ALL F9 pilots, made a critical mistake at the beginning of our negotiations. That error was the low offer we requested. It was much too low - some here were screaming that we underbid but by that time, the bid was already in. It was too late to try and use any leverage gained over time.
Just think, if Indigo had granted us everything we asked for (rates, contract language, etc.), we would still be bottom of the industry today. Despite that, the MEC would be forced to send it to us for a vote because it is, after all, what we asked for. Imagine being part of a negotiation and being granted what you ask for only to not allow it to go to the pilots for a vote stating that it's not enough. Talk about bad faith...
Indigo didn't give us all that we asked for, of course, but they did make what might be considered a reasonable offer. So, the MEC if fairly compelled to send it forward to us (all the while hoping/praying we don't accept).
By us voting it down (and voting it down strongly) we empower our MEC and NC to go back to the table and ask for rates/conditions that we should've asked for in the beginning. We as a group should never be afraid of voting and the MEC really is in a pretty good position here. If the AIP makes it past us, then the MEC was justified in giving it to us. If not, then they have the power/leverage/backing they need.
That's why is't important now to vote NO now AND to write your reps and let them know what it would take for your yes vote. Be realistic - asking for $500/hr and 20 days off every month is just as bad as considering the low rates we have now.
This is the first offer in a negotiation - nobody ever takes the 1st offer unless it's absolutely mind blowing. Ours is far from that.