Originally Posted by
bored
This is the JNC message sent early this morning, so we have some context here:
Negotiations for the Joint Collective Bargaining Agreement continue this week in Washington, D.C., and have yielded positive results. During the first ten hours of bargaining, we reached a Tentative Agreement (TA) on Sections 11 (Training & Testing) and 24 (Filling of Vacancies), and continued progress on Sections 25 (Scheduling) and 27 (Insurance Benefits). We believe a TA on the JCBA is within reach by the end of the week.
As some of you may have heard, the Pinnacle MEC is planning a number of informational picketing events commencing on Friday, December 10 in Memphis, TN. We have typically found informational picketing to be very successful when we have reached an impasse during bargaining. However, considering the progress at the bargaining table this week, we believe it will be counter-productive to engage in picketing at this time. While we respect the Pinnacle MEC’s point of view, we are asking all Mesaba pilots to refrain from participating at these events. We need to remain focused on our goal of One Contract for One Seniority List.
All that being said... If we were at an impasse in the JCBA talks, then let's picket. But if we are truly in this together, for a JCBA, we should be supporting our JNC in their hard work at getting this done. Picketing will undermine the progress made, especially the progress made this week. It will also undermine the "unity" we apparently had. If this picketing sends any message, it's a message to Colgan and Mesaba pilots that 9E wants to do it's own thing and have abandoned hopes on a JCBA. We get it, you've been amendable for far too long. But these aren't your section 6 talks! These are talks for a JCBA. We're all far better off with a JCBA than if we were to each take a separate road. So we should be supporting the efforts by the JNC. When talks have truly failed... then, the gloves come off.
Yes, this is exactly right.
Originally Posted by
shimmydamp
No disrespect to the PCL MEC, but there's a difference between being unified and following a group off the cliff, and I think it speaks volumes that the XJ MEC and 9L MEC are both against the picketing event.
Is ALPA National SPC even going to be there?
I understand that 6 years amendable is frustrating and it's hard to separate the two, but this JCBA has absolutely NOTHING to do with the history of the previous failed 9E negotiations.
If the company is playing hardball then why aren't the other MEC's onboard? I fear a deal may be in reach but PCL pilots are too caught up in the history of their negotiations to believe it.
Exactly right! One set of circumstances (past PCL section 6) is COMPLETELY different than the other (current JCBA negotiations).
Unfortunately, it seems some pilots are not able to remove the past politics from the equation (with a certain degree of understanding, of course). However, the MEC's are there to lead by example. The MEC/ JNC has all the information. If my JNC tells me now is NOT THE TIME FOR THESE ACTIONS....then damn it, it is not time for these types of actions.
Colgan and Mesaba MEC's are unified w/ our brothers/sisters at Pinnacle. But, is the Pinnacle MEC unified w/ us? I believe they are and have simply stumbled a bit. However, it would be prudent to point out, running this picketing event in spite of the JNC and the other two MEC's opinion certainly opens that idea to question! Progress in the JCBA is being made; when that stops, we'll give 'em hell. Until then, we need to stay the course and get this deal done for the betterment of ALL of our pilots.