I am the one who said we re-affirmed previous agreements. We did, but it wasn’t the *only* thing we did. We got *many* other things in this MOU, but solidifying the previous agreements with stronger language was one of them.

The alternative is going to an arbitrator and hoping they rule in our favor. Arbitrators generally side with each side about half the time and try to issue non-decisions so they don’t make either side mad enough to strike them off the list. It doesn’t matter how good or bad your case is. I like the MOU solution that gives us everything we wanted (and then some) better.

The Railway Labor Act is awesome sometimes and sucks sometimes, but it is our reality and we have to live within it. We play by the government’s rules and we play the hand we are dealt. This MOU played our hand almost perfectly in my opinion.