Originally Posted by
DAWGS
But if it meant just a furlough, and not on the UAL list, would you feel the same? This is why I don't think we can take it back under ALPA. Hold the line, maybe, but I highly doubt that as well. Taking jobs directly en mass from the regionals back to the majors would cause too many problems for ALPA or maybe even its demise, imho. Many people want to give lip service to the return of jobs to mainline, only if they come with that job. When they are on the street with no number at mainline, then the problems will begin. When thousands of ALPA members would fall into this boat, what do you think they will be saying to ALPA?
Has RJ scope at a Major ever been tightened, once already loosened at an ALPA carrier? I don't think so. It is much easier to slowly outsource jobs than to take a job back, once it has already been given. Especially when that job is a fellow union member. Management loves this conflict within our own house.
Really glad that you brought this up, as I was thinking the same thing. Why is it assumed that bringing the Regional flying in-house would mean an automatic number for Regional pilots at mainline? It's not a merger, or even a purchase. It would be a phase-out of flying as contracts expire. I hear the argument that there is no way the company would pay to train all those pilots when they have qualified pilots flying for their Express carriers. Well, first of all, we have 1500 brothers and sisters who are out of a job that will need to be brought back and re-trained anyway, so let's get them in their first. Second, I'm convinced that the 70's are of limited value to today's Mainline carrier, and the 50's are all but worthless at $80 a barrel. It's really about the 90-120 seat market. The only reason management has been doggedly bringing the 70's along is because they can't have the 90's. Well, if you are going to bring the E190 type in-house and bring back our furloughed pilots to fly them, then you have access to the E170/175 as well.
I diverge with you a little bit about ALPA. The cynical side of me says that ALPA will easily "change sides" to whatever area shows growth potential. They certainly didn't have any real reaction to watching 10's of thousands of good mainline jobs go to the regionals, so I suspect that they wouldn't mind a number of them going back. Along those lines, I don't see how ALPA has a say even if they WERE interested in protecting their regional members from furlough. We've had a front row seat for how effective they have been at stopping mainline furloughs. ALPA National doesn't negotiate our scope or our contract. They sign the deal at the end, and I'm sure that Scope tightening wouldn't keep them from putting the ink on the paper.
Time will tell how successful we are at getting scope reigned back in, but for the first time in a decade, I believe we have something that management wants. I like the way this is headed. Let's get our 1500 back flying UNITED jets, no matter how many seats they have in them.