The old USAir union already cut loose their furloughed brothers as part of the merger agreement. Th new USAir only has to give them preferrential interviews, but they start all over as I understand it. Something like that.

 

You have no idea what you're talking about. The merger agreement does not address that... Nice try...

 

The furloughed pilots from AAA are "not being cut loose", they just cannot displace an active pilot. The recalls mean that whoever accepts a recall will come back on the active list at his normal place on the AAA seniority list.

If the West (AWA) has any new hire openings then the same furloughee would have the option to go to the AWA list, on the bottom of that list. However, when the two seniority lists are combined (doesn't look like that will happen for at least 1 more year) that recalled pilot would go to whatever position on the combined list based on his original AAA seniority number. Confused? You should be! Any AAA pilot recalled to AWA gets to keep his longevity for pay purposes, so even though he may be placed on the bottom of the AWA list for a year he gets whatever longevity he had accrued for pay and vacation. Longevity, of course, is based only on the active time that pilot spent on the AAA seniority list. We have former AAA pilots now that were hired a couple of years ago that still have AAA seniority numbers. It will be interesting when this is all through.

One more thing, there are 3 757s coming and all the E 190s. They will be placed on the AAA certificate (that will be the surviving certificate for FAA purposes) but whoever flys them is still to be negotiated per the transistion agreement. AWA was in a growth mode before this buyout so we feel we should have a share of the new flying before the lists are merged. The plan is for us to have a single certificate in April of 2007, but it can't be a done deal until the seniority lists are merged as well.

 

Cactus Mike

I am glad to hear furloughee's are starting to be recalled. As for your Merged list..........Mergers are always a very contentious issue.............and with good reason. I probably don't have to tell you, but, expect Managment to play both AAA and AWA pilot groups (all labor groups for that matter) against each other until you folks get a deal.

In any case, Good luck with negotiations and with the new USAirways banner. I truely wish all you folks the very best (both AWA and AAA). You've all earned it!.

 

I have no idea how many pilots will bypass a recall at US Air but my F/O this last trip is furloughed from UAL and he said it was running about 3 calls for every returnee. Really, unless you are out of aviation or have a bad job then there is not too much incentive to go back on the bottom of the list. Bypass until you can hold a decent line or see how the industry shakes out. I know there are a lot of Jet Blue pilots from AAA, would they come back to an airline in the midst of a merger? I sure wouldn't.

Red, I have no idea how this will all shake out. I talk to our negotiators fairly often since I know them all and they don't have a clue how the final list will go. The contract negotiators (a separate bunch) have made a lot of progress in combining our contracts so that is a positive sign. Of course the fact that the AWA contract is better in almost all areas is kind of depressing to me but both sides have been working well together. Ultimately this will probably go to arbitration. The AAA pilots seem to be stuck on the DOH concept while we are happy with relative seniority. The result is an impass right now and thus it most likely will go to the arbitrator. The soonest he can meet with them is in October (for 1 week only) so not much will happen until next fall. I don't see us being combined until next May (2007) so the division of flying until then and the placement of the recalled pilots and new airplanes is a big deal to both sides. I think we will have a great airline when this is done but it sure will be ugly until it's over. Shotgun marriages usually are.

 

Mike---it'll all be okay. I see good things for US/AWA in the future.

No matter what happens, remember this: Your merger and seniority integration will NEVER be as bad, as inequitable or as destructive and one-sided as the American/TWA debacle. Only 20% of TWA's pilots are still left at AA, and only 1500 of TWA's original 22,000 employees still have a job there.

Best of luck; I believe it will turn out okay.

Besides----you've got HNL layovers!

 

Here is the latest from our MEC Chairman:

This week I took a lot of questions from our pilots at both the pizza lunch and during our conference call about the new flying recently announced by management and our rights under the Transition Agreement. I want to make it perfectly clear right from the outset that this MEC’s position is that the Transition Agreement guarantees that new flying not contained in the fleet plan when the Transition Agreement went into effect last summer must be split between the two pilot groups.

Let me give you a little background. When the Transition Agreement was negotiated, few believed that we’d see much growth on the property while the two airlines were being put together. We didn’t want to run the risk, however, that flying might be added that would benefit one pilot group and not the other during the period of separate operations. As a result, language was added to the Transition Agreement that stipulates how that flying should be distributed between the pilot groups. When you have a chance, take a look at paragraph II.5.a, b, and c.

Since last week’s announcement, it’s clear to me that management is confused about what their commitments are under the Transition Agreement they signed last summer. While we do not dispute the fact that the newly announced aircraft can be placed on the US Airways operating certificate, we have had to remind management that they are obligated to establish a bridge training program to “…facilitate the fair and equitable distribution of flying between the two pilot groups.”

We don’t have a problem with growth aircraft being placed on the US Airways operating certificate, since we understand that the US Airways operating certificate will be the surviving certificate when this merger is complete. The Transition Agreement was written to reflect that reality. That’s why there’s a provision to establish a “bridge” training program if the company should acquire “growth” aircraft during the period of separate operations, just as they have now. Ultimately we will all be trained onto the US Airways certificate, but, during this period of separate operations, the bridge training program gives the America West pilots access to those growth aircraft.

The Transition Agreement also provides a mechanism for the two MECs to decide internally which pilot group will get the new flying. I want our pilots to know that these discussions are already going on. Like many of you, I was caught in last weekend’s blizzard while flying a trip. I spent 54 hours at the Bradley layover hotel and Monday morning John McIlvenna and I were on the phone with Bill Pollock and Kim Snider of the US Airways MEC. Joining us was ALPA attorney Mike Abram. We are all on the same page about what the Transition Agreement says and what the Transition Agreement means. Since getting back to Phoenix, I have had several conversations with management about this matter, and there is no doubt they are now aware of what our rights are under the Transition Agreement. Today, Bill and I sent a letter to Mr. Parker explaining our concerns. A copy of this letter is posted on the AWA MEC website.

I want to close on this topic by mentioning a corollary concern our pilots have about the recently announced recall of 55 pilots on the East to, in part, support this new flying. As I stated in the pizza lunch yesterday, it’s clear the company is going to need to start bringing some of the furloughed pilots back to the line. They need them for the 757 flying, but they also need them to support increasing block hours on both properties. We expect to be hiring from that furlough pool as early as this fall to support an increase in block hours in the West for the 2007 schedule. The good news is that we are increasing our flying at both properties. Our pilots have asked me how that will impact the seniority integration talks and a possible arbitration. I’m not going to make any predictions about how seniority talks are going to progress, and I’m certainly not going to venture an opinion on how the arbitrator will rule in our case, but I think it’s fair to say that at some point a snapshot of the seniority lists must be taken, and I believe that snapshot will fall somewhere between May 19, 2005, when the merger was first announced and October 24, 2005, when the PID was established.
I am heartened by what I see as an increase in participation by our pilot group. Week after week the numbers have been growing at both our pizza lunches and on our conference calls. The message this sends to management is loud and clear: our pilots are unified and informed of their rights as this merger proceeds.

 

That was what I was told by an AAA furloughee. Perhaps his view of the arrangement was subjective. Several other such individuals (with whom I have flown) feel that their union left them hanging out to dry.

 

ALPA has let the furloughees down many times. In this area (recall) they've basically held the line ensuring that the furloughees return somewhere, in this case at the bottom of the AWA list, until the arbitrator decides on integration...

 

320---


They've (ALPA) let ACTIVE pilots down many times, too.

Don't get me started!