Originally Posted by
CBreezy
I'm not "afraid" of a membership vote. It's just a dumb proposition with how we currently do union business. Our LECs run the show. They set policy. They vote to approve certain chair positions. They vote for contractual LOAs or TAs. They set the negotiating priorities. The MEC Chairman works directly for the majority of them.
In the current way we do business, we would have to choose between 2 or more random pilots no one has heard of and decide based solely on high school class president quality campaign letters. I promise free food in the crew lounge and hotel points! If that person wins, the LEC has no power to speak for the will of their constituents. 0-9? Too bad..the pilots elected Captain free stuff for everyone.
In other words, the same way we currently choose LEC leaders. And as your first paragraph states, the LECs are supposed to be running the show regardless.
I’m more interested in the voices of the pilot group as a whole being heard than I am the voices of the few select pilots who are on the MEC — many of whom are only concerned about their ALPA careers. There are too many potential conflicts of interest and ways to manipulate a group that small. The potential risks to having a much larger electorate are significantly less IMHO.
The current situation demonstrates the need for greater checks and balances on the MEC.