Originally Posted by
UncleSam
While I don't usually comment on here about DALPA/ALPA and the direction our contract should take, I do find it troubling that some folks (not singling you out ExAF) get extremely excited and make inflamatory remarks about something that the union leadership DOES NOT say.
I venture to say that we all have something very important to us that the chairman did NOT mention. Maybe retirement is more important to me than scope. Should I get all bent out of shape because of that? I think it is important to realize that the MEC has to take the concerns of ALL the Delta pilots into consideration and try to focus on issues that we all agree on. In many ways that is very difficult to do but here, I think, the master chairman has focused on an issue that we all agree on - pay. I will not blast him right out of the gate for what he did not mention even if it is very important to me individually or collectively among some here on APC. We don't speak for the entire pilot group. I'm sure that the lounge visits have had different flavors around the system. I am willing to give this new leadership team a chance to see how they will respond to us before giving them serious critique.
Uncle,
You have a point - but it only goes so far. For whatever reason, our Chaiman feels compelled to type up bullet lists of concerns. Repeatedly leaving Scope off these lists, just as LM has done for years is a bit troubling.
You mentioned retirement as an example of another important issue that was not mentioned. While it is true that retirement issues were omitted in this specific letter, Scope is almost never mentioned. It is almost as if ALPA National has proscribed all talk of Scope issues.
I would venture that you can find DALPA correspondence on every important issue - hell, they probably even mentioned Scope once or twice in the last decade, but what concerns a lot of people is that the issue seems to be continually downplayed.
About two or three years ago I asked the questioned - "Could Lee Moak be downplaying the Scope issue because he would eventually seek the votes of the RJ crowd?" At the time numerous ALPA defenders responded - "Lee has no plans to run for ALPA National." While that may in fact have been true at the time - he obviously changed his mind.
Maybe having Lee at National will benefit us - I don't know. Overall I thought Lee did a very good job with the glaring exception of DCI related Scope issues. I have no illusions of taking back 50 and even 70 seat flying - but lets hold the line where it is, and look seriously at the 76 seat flying.
Scoop