If pilots seriously wish to prosper in the "free market," Agency Shop as we know it must go. It is a noticeably archaic policy that prevents the "tension" of the free marketplace wherein people can stop buying the product if they no longer like it. It inhibits the influx of innovative ideas, it creates apathy, and it makes leaders lazy. If anything can be said about airline executives, they are not lazy. They have learned to compete well, and one of their weakest competitors today is...Labor.

It is gratifying that others are now beginning to see the negative impact of Agency Shop on unionism. Here is an excerpt from the platform of the PEARL group at UAL, the organization that is trying to get ALPA decertified:

Dear United Airlines Pilots,

...Here are some of the highlights of the positive changes you can expect from the United Pilots Association:

This WILL NOT be an Agency Shop union - What better way to maintain control of YOUR union than to ultimately hold the financial purse strings....

And this from Dan Brannan's website (Dan was, until several weeks ago, a candidate for the ALPA presidency):

6. Agency Shop: I will direct an investigation into the value of Agency Shop in the competitive marketplace. I want to know whether pilots are union members because they truly believe that they are getting value for their dues dollar, or because they don't have a choice. If the latter is true, then our high membership numbers mask our internal weaknesses and enable dominance by our competitors. The question is: Is our product worth the price? Can we sell it on the open market, or is it only marketable to a captive audience? There are solutions available to both balance the financial needs of the organization and to permit members to express themselves with their feet and pocketbooks. If deemed useful, we will implement them. Only by permitting this kind of dissent can we truly gauge the support and non-support of our membership.

In response to the following poll statement:

...Nobody should be required to join or support a union as a condition of employment.

73% of Americans answered "Yes", including 54% of union members!

(See: http://www.capitalresearch.org/pubs/pdf/06_04_LW.pdf

It is no secret that Americans see unions as more corrupt than management, and they will not risk joining an organization from which they cannot walk away.

In the open market, Agency Shop is nothing more than an indicator that a union cannot sell its goods based on merit. It is counter-competitive and it is not a sign of strength. If pilots wish to learn to compete successfully with airline executives, Agency Shop must go.