Originally Posted by mike734
This will not come easy and Union leaders will be threatened with prison. They will be threatened with racketeering charges. We need leaders willing to take that chance and we need lawyers able to keep them out.
This can be done but it will take some "outside the box" thinking. This needs to be addressed at the next ALPA BOD.
First, you hit it right on the head; no union leader is ever going to lead their membership down a path that the union management could be held responsible for. No one is going to vote in a system that will mean they could possible get prison time.
Second, if you ask Duane Woerth his retort would be 'yeah, but United 2000 would have never happened'. The current system allows ALPA to sit back and shout the rah-rah without having to do a whole lot. Remember each airline has its' own union that is supported by national, not the other way around like you see with pipe fitters, electricians, carpenters, etc. This allowed the industry-leading pay scales witnessed with UAL's contract in 2000 (a homerun swing, for sure, by ALPA's point of view).
As a result, the current system pits pilot group against pilot group (sound familiar?) to "raise the bar". As a result, there is little to no safety net on the way back down the pay scales.
Another reason you'll never ever see a national seniority list is, no one has the balls to tell every fighter pilot they have to start their careers at a turbo-prop regional. If you look at other unions that have all the protections you claim you want, there are certain things that come with it that may be less than desirable. For instance, most require an apprenticeship after your schooling. Necessarily certain groups would be excluded from direct entry into this career in the future.
At this point it may seem advantageous to change the representation at airlines, but realize, I think this ship is just too big to turn around at this juncture. We're stuck with what we've got for now. Just look at the RJDC (not that I agree or disagree with them, they are used merely as an example) to see how it is not easy at all to change a system to fit what your pilot groups' need.
Just my 1/50th of a buck.
Respectfully,
JayDub