Originally Posted by
sailingfun
I know that you (Bucking Bar) are aware that scope in the last 3 major contracts was the very last thing settled. The pay rates were already done and set in stone before agreements were ever made on scope. While its possible that the company may have agreed on pay rates in anticipation of scope gains those involved in the process don't believe so. There was certainly no direct if you give us X number of 76 seat jets we will raise your pay.
What I find very perplexing is that the junior pilots resist the contract areas that would bring the most job gain the quickest. That is work rule changes. We gave up 2500 jobs pre merger to work rule changes. Post merger that number is larger. (good example then posted)
With the 1113 contract we have essentially become a cap less airline. Every pilot gets to fill out a contract survey. Recapturing some of the work rules we gave up and getting a real cap back on the property will be high on my list even though at my seniority it will not have much effect. Work rule changes that bring back 10 percent of the lost jobs will however be huge for the bottom half of the seniority list.
Sailing,
My information is based on the ZipLines, Negotiator's Notepads and published testimony of those called in the Ford Cooksey v. ALPA litigation. I do not have any internal insights, BUT, it does appear from my reading that interest based bargaining was used to reach an agreement (under pressure) and that jobs were traded for gains in other parts of the contract. No where is this more evident than in NWA's ZipLine publications. That deal is now part of our contract.
In my opinion, we failed our members by not holding unity sacrosanct. As Mesabah (annoyingly, but entirely accurately) points out, no Judge has ever abrogated a scope agreement.
You are correct there are other parts of our contract which need help. Absolutely! But, the point of this threat is a renegade group of Delta pilots threatens our Association with a representational alternative. The basis for their support is a perceived conflict of interest which places Delta pilots prostrate to regional carriers.
ALPA is not under direct threat due to loss of work rules. ALPA is under threat because it participated in the sale of unity.
The DPA is akin to a GPWS alert. Probably nothing, but ignoring the issue could be fatal. Not being a one trick pony, just focusing on the greatest threat.
Your report is the first I have heard that scope was the last section settled, aside from Dan Ford's writing that scope was "left over bargaining." Never understood what he meant by that comment. If true, why would we leave scope for last? Usually the last thing bargained is the thing most compromised to reach agreement.