Originally Posted by
Overnitefr8
i know last time some, or at least the IND rep (who is now retired) voted to send the TA to the whole union for a vote because he (they) didn't think it was his (their) job to give it a thumbs up or down. In reality it is the MECs job to decide if it is the best we can do. The union as a whole can only say yes or no. The MEC can say, no its not good enough yet, do some more negotiating
We are pilots with no formal training in this field, negotiating against Company attorneys with decades of experience, who are incentivized to ensure that our mistakes to us appear innocuous, yet are significant enough to fail the mediation litmus test...It is subtle, but beyond our appreciation.
I can go on ad nauseam with examples, however what I have learned over the years watching this process is this:
DO NOT GIVE UP ANYTHING you truly value...Discussions of giving up a defined benefit plan for some unknown plan that might benefit some while abandoning others is just silliness....Our Union can’t negotiate what “lie flat seats” means, how can you expect them to negotiate something as complex as the variable plan?...As others have said, there are ways to expand our retirement without sacrificing the defined benefit plan...(Cash over cap is an example)
I attended the “Dog and Pony” show associated with the ratification of the 2015 Contract and was struck by one statement made by our Union leadership at that time...That statement was: “In this process, we didn’t leave one dime on the table...Not one dime.”
Not to diminish the efforts of our negotiators and their commitment, but I still wonder if that was a true statement, or if they just ran out of money, and resolve...What happens if that same thing happens when it’s time to negotiate our retirement?