By DAVID BATESOf the News-Register[
In a conference room in Dallas, Texas, representatives from McMinnville-based cargo carrier Evergreen International Aviation sat down last month with negotiators with the union representing the pilots who fly their 747s around the world.
But it did not end well, according to the pilots. "Their statement to us, across the table, as we were departing, was, 'You've had it too good for too long,'" said James Touchette, the veteran 747 pilot who heads the union negotiating team
The two sides are not expected to meet again until January. When they do, they will be addressing an issue that has been on the table for more than four years now - the wages of Evergreen's pilots, which are reportedly well below average for the highly competitive cargo industry
Evergreen has a longstanding policy of not commenting on any aspect of contract talks. The company has not issued any press releases or responded to any press requests for comment.
Evergreen pilots have been working without a new contract for years. That recently led them to affiliate with the 53,000-member Airline Pilots Association International
Touchette has been with Evergreen 24 years. He said the company is proposing an array of work rule changes that would effectively slash salaries that are already 30 percent below those of pilots flying similar planes for Atlas Air, Polar Air, Southern Air and other cargo carriers
The pilots complain they have to fly dangerous routes with little company support. "Here we are flying into a combat zone, and they're more or less telling us, 'You're on your own.'"
Despite the involvement of a mediator, pilots say they've seen little interest from management to update a contract signed when the pilots first organized in 1999 as The Aviators Group
Touchette said Evergreen presented essentially the same terms in November that it proposed in February. He concedes that times are tough - Evergreen had 240 pilots at the start of the year, but is now down to 190 - but said the company continues to do good business with the U.S. military
"All we're asking for is to be brought closer to industry standards, and we've given them five years to do it," he said. "And they want to give us 1 percent. That's basically what it boils down to."[