Originally Posted by
DAL 88 Driver
Moak's strategy achieved what amounts to a cost of living adjustment (COLA) to our bankruptcy/emergency pay rates. That's a fact.
In an effort to keep this in the context of the thread, the FACT is that none of our peers have managed even that much in this environment. So it is a FACT that Lee Moak and his strategy were the most successful...based on your data. The independent group supported by the advisors and law firm the DPA is using (USAPA) has failed to even keep pace.
Originally Posted by
DAL 88 Driver
My opinion is that he did this at the cost of making it sound like we're satisfied with that, and that we have little or even no expectation of ever getting back to anywhere near the buying power our profession has typically enjoyed.
I guess we heard his comments differently. I've never heard or read him state that we should be satisfied with where we are. His Sept 23rd Chairman's Letter stated,
"To be clear, much work remains, and while everyone on the MEC and within the extended committee structure is working hard to carry out the work of the Delta pilots, we recognize we can and must constantly look for ways to improve." A message suggesting "satisfaction" might have stated, "
We made it!" or "
Mission Accomplished!" I heard Lee speak in NRT last year, and his message and tone were the exact opposite of satisfaction with the status quo.
Regarding your reference to "buying power", where would you rank straight compensation among all of the contractual issues ALPA has and will address? Would you rank it higher than protection from international alliance partners taking our flying? Does the AF/KLM joint venture agreement that guarantees us the lion's share of transAtlantic flying look like a "win" or "loss" when you compare it to United's incursion by Aer Lingus, or American's requirement to shed 3 LHR routes (to us!) to consummate their alliance with British Airways?
I'd like to read you opinions on those too.
Originally Posted by
DAL 88 Driver
It seems obvious to me that having set this kind of tone... and the expectations (on both sides) that go along with it... can only serve to hurt us when we get into Section 6 negotiations.
And yet his "tone", "strategy" and actions have yielded better results than the others. So the message I can infer from DPA supporters upset with ALPA's performance is that actual success isn't as important as tone and shouting our expectations?