ALPA needs to start forcing the airlines to consider pilots a commodity, much like their fuel, or property lease expenses.
ALPA cannot even protect its members from concessions on their current contracts, so I doubt they (or anyone else for that matter) can "force" and airline to do anything.
Fuel is market driven - there is greater need than there is supply. The opposite is true of the pilot pipeline.
Because if ALPA national acted like they should, airlines would be required to hire furloughed ALPA pilots before hiring off the street.... very much like movie production firms are required to hire SAG members before employing non-SAG members.... and once employed, the new ones become SAG members.
Actors typically do not make a 30 year career filming one movie. They are signed to do a film, they film it, and then they are out of work until the next movie deal comes along. In essence, they are gainfully unemployed between deals.
As a comparison, it would be like a pilot getting signed to fly a 3 month schedule. At the end of that 3 months the pilot would be unemployed until his/her agent could find him/her another temporary gig.
The guild only works in Hollywood because of the nature of the business with regards to the film industry. In aviation, you compete for a job, you are represented by a union, and you plan on and hope that your current job will carry you to retirement. If it doesn't, you must start out at the bottom at another carrier. That is the way this industry (read: industry, and not unionization) works. Unpleasant for some, but a reality nonetheless.
The contract would cover everything that is in most contracts, and just establish a base line that no MEC would be authorized to go accept less than. Requiring them to hire from an ALPA seniority furlough list before hiring off the street would be included in all contracts.
First, any contract between an union and a carrier MUST be agreed upon by the two parties involved. There is no way that any union is going to be successful in telling an airline how to run the HR department.
Second, if no agreement is reached and a strike is authorized, don't count on much success their either. The government will most likely not allow it to happen. Also, if one were to happen, most airlines would probably opt to file for bankruptcy, shut down, and then start up and start over - this time as a non-union carrier. And don't think there is a shortage of people willing to take a job there either.
Third, airlines with independent pilot unions will not have anything to do with the "guild". The airline certainly will not want to deal with them, and neither will the independent union representing their pilots.
Why? Probably for the same reason that the cops and firemen in several states have this exact language.... their unions would not sign a contract until the requirement was agreed to hire from a layoff list before hiring from the street.
This is a very poor example to use a comparison too. The majority of fire protection districts in the United States is volunteer. With the exception of major cities, most cities consist of either a combination of paid and volunteer, or they are 100% volunteer. Also, many FD's used to provide EMS service as well. The majority of that is now subcontracted to private companies who provide that service.
If the 401k's and such were managed/held by ALPA, it would not be such a major pain in the neck to move from job to job.... all that would change is who makes the payments.
Doesn't ALPA currently want to take union dues out of it's member's 401k? I thought I saw this on another APC thread.
Moving your 401k when moving from one employer to another is not a big deal to begin with.
So, a blanket statement that it can't be done is not realistic. People with more hurdles than us have already done it.
Realistically, it cannot be done.