Judge's Decision in UAL v. ALPA
 

November 18, 2008

To: United Pilots

From: MEC Chairman Captain Steve Wallach

Re: Judge's Decision in UAL v. ALPA

Given the court's decision, and our obligations under the Railway Labor Act, it is imperative to remind everyone that pilots will create real peril not only for our union but for themselves personally if they take any economic action in response to the court's decision, in response to the latest round of schedules, in response to the most recent furlough announcements or for any other reason.

The court's preliminary injunction will be issued shortly. It will likely apply not only to our union but to all United pilots. The federal court will deal severely with, and we cannot tolerate, any form of sick-out, elevated fatigue calls, slowdown or any form of pressure or harassment of other pilots for fulfilling their schedules or for accepting junior/senior manning. We will have more details when the court has issued the actual injunction.

ALPA's counsel is reviewing the decision for a basis of appeal, and the MEC will keep everyone advised of all developments. In the meantime, we must all continue to make every effort to maintain our flight schedule. We remind all United pilots that failure to comply with our legal obligations in these areas will have very serious legal and financial consequences for all of us, including significant risks to individual pilots' careers.

The UAL MEC forum was shut down this morning.
Guess they don't want any more fuel for the fire.

It sickens me that in United's press release they proclaim this as a victory for their employees and passengers and that they were only trying to prevent evil pilots from disrupting flights.

we're like the mesa of the legacies-- pretty sad-- we'll see if anyone has the cajones to still cause some havoc--- the 2172 are pretty ballsie-- they wont go on furlough with positive sick time

So can anyone explain what the company won or those of us not in the know?

This is from Dow Jones Newswires, an erstwhile non-biased publication:

CHICAGO -(Dow Jones)- From picketing ground workers and flight attendants to disgruntled leaders of a pilot's union, labor issues are heating up at U.S. airlines.

Commercial carriers breathed a sigh of relief in recent months as a sharp drop in the price of fuel suggests that they can make money next year, rather than face bankruptcy or liquidation.

Now, with many multiyear labor contracts up for negotiation, labor groups - stung by deep cost-cuts by airlines this decade and deteriorating economic conditions in recent months - seek to share in the industry's improved outlook.

Union officials at United Airlines, a unit of UAL Corp. (UAUA), have been particularly vocal on behalf of their members in the Air Line Pilots' Association. During a three-year reorganization in bankruptcy, some of United's labor groups saw wages and benefits cut nearly in half.

A federal judge Tuesday said the United pilots went too far with some illegal "sickouts" earlier this year. The judge issued findings likely to lead to a temporary injunction against the pilots, to stop such action. United brought the suit against the pilots last summer. In a statement Tuesday, United said that pilots' actions disrupted business, although they were undertaken by "a very few" of ALPA members.

In a prepared response, the union said it advised pilots "that it remains essential not to engage in any form of economic action involving United Airlines."

Even as the judge rules against the United pilots, flight attendants at American Airlines, a unit of AMR Corp. (AMR), began picketing Tuesday in three cities to protest a 25% cut in pay and benefits, along with an increased workload. The Ft. Worth airline, the world's largest carrier by passenger traffic, has implemented deep cost cuts outside of bankruptcy.

A spokesman for the Association of Professional Flight Attendants said the demonstration will commemorate the 15th anniversary of a successful labor strike in 1993, and will "remind management that flight attendants are determined to win a good contract, even if they must take the ultimate step to get it."

Labor relations at Southwest Airlines Co. (LUV) have been less contentious over the years - helped by a successful fuel-hedging program, the airline made money through lean years for the industry. But last week, ground workers picketed in Dallas and Chicago, and plan to expand their protests.

Said Charles Cerf, president of the Transport Workers Union Local 555: "Our members are struggling with everyday living expenses and wages have not kept pace with the rising cost of living. Some of our members have not had a raise since 2005 after accepting a two-year contract extension that included unprofitable stock options in lieu of raises."

Even at JetBlue Airways Corp. (JBLU), where employees haven't had union representation before, pilots last week said they were seeking regulatory approval to form a union. "We have complete faith in our current company leadership, and believe that this will be a cooperative effort," said pilot spokesman Michael Sorbie. He said the union wants to be prepared to work with future managers who might not be so labor-friendly. To cope with high fuel prices and the weakening economy, JetBlue has cut back on expansion plans, expecting no growth in 2009.

Some labor leaders have expressed hope that the new administration in Washington, including a Democrat in the White House, and many more liberal members of congress may be more sympathetic to organized labor than government leaders have been in recent years.

Being one of the 1450, I did in fact burn up all of my sick time prior to furlough. It was kind of like being on terminal leave. Glad to be gone now that I can actually pay the bills again with my new job.

"We remind all United pilots that failure to comply with our legal obligations in these areas will have very serious legal and financial consequences for all of us, including significant risks to individual pilots' careers."

So the very real possibility of BK and/or liquidation is not risk enough to an individual pilots' career???

Sounds like a catch 22.... that sucks...

I spent over an hour reading the judges decision and it was very disheartening. It appears the spin the UAL team put forth on everything was believed, hook, line and sinker.

Welcome to the world of Big Business and sympathetic judges to Big Brother. For all practical purposes, ALPA is as dead as a doornail and this proves that airline mamangement has a good future of running roughshod over their employees.

BTW, the F/A's wont have a chance in hell of striking. Forced arbitration and a crap contract is the front runner among the oddsmakers.

Sad, but true.

hate to sound like a *********, but how can stuff like this be going on at the same time that all i'm hearing about is the poor auto industry. maybe if they don't get bailed out and they end up going through the same crap people's eyes will start to be opened to the corrupt corporate America....nah!:mad:

The decision by the judge stinks.

Good on ya' and glad you found better employment.

IMO, and it ain't worth much, the real issue with this "temporary" injunction against UAL ALPA (forget about the 4 pilots named, it isn't the purpose) will have great implications on the union's in the industry and of course pilot's specifically.

I haven't read the judge's ruling yet, so don't have specifics. What I can say that an injunction of a subjective nature such as this is very dangerous and opens up many avenues for any mgmt team to "cry foul" and take an issue to federal court using this as precedent! Very damaging.

The burden of proof has been shifted to the union. Very bad. Guilty until proven innocent is a BAD thing my friends.

Personally, glad I'm voluntarily leaving UAL on a vol furlough. 11 years here has been enough barring some drastic change in the scenery. I may never be recalled and may get screwed by whatever potential seniority integration between UAL and CAL might yield in the future......and I don't care.

Gladly leaving the 121 industry! I stayed too long, particularly at this company. After 11 years, 5 of which I was an active ALPA worker, I have had more than enough. My 6 year old daughter agrees.

My best to all and fly safe!

Soon to be a former UAL pilot (who wasn't at risk of furlough....today).

FXDWG

Just Curious.. What is your new career?

Best of luck to you though I think there is a large group of people who feel the same way you do!

I haven't read the expanded version, but this decision sounds like it's in line with what to expect from the RLA. Remember, its design is to keep the transportation system moving and it's not labor friendly. Right in line with court decisions against APA and DAL ALPA pre-9/11. Unions have always had to exercise caution with the RLA.

Bottom line is, if you think you are going to go rogue and do things on your own illegally, you put yourself and your union at risk. Those guys cost ALPA (ie: you and me) money and weakened UAL ALPAs ability to effectively organize a LEGAL lob action in the future. Any word on what happens to the 4 named pilots?

Hasn't cost you a dime yet. Besides, you fly for Delta right? Man you must have a short memory. :p

Delta Air Lines wins injunction order from appeals court | Airline Industry Information | Find Articles at BNET


As for the 4 pilots...no word yet.

You're way off. I can tell you for a FACT that no one involved in the suit EVER told anyone to call in sick. Too bad you accuse your union brothers and sisters of costing you money for something they TRULY NEVER DID.

Did I read the injunction correct? NO STRIKE??? I missed something...
Also, anyone see how the heads of the auto industry got to D.C. to ask for a bailout? In the company jets! Reminds me of some other bailouts. After 9-11, Midway (2, or was it 3?). Hey, we need money to keep this place running. Thanks, SEE YA!
AIG, we need money to keep this place running. Thanks, PARTYTIME!!!
Auto industry, we need money to keep this place running! Thanks, see you later (as they get in their Gulfstreams, for an hour flight. Which they could've taken North..I mean Delta!!! Or UAL through ORD:p)
BUT, NOOOOOOOO it's the UNIONS that are bringing these places down!!!:rolleyes:

I'll add that everyone involved did quite the opposite of what they were accused of. And thats the TRUTH.

That is so true.

Yeah I do work for DAL, hence I'm very aware of how you have to be careful. We had a bunch of guys sued by DAL back in 2000. Once the contract was signes, the hostages had the lawsuits against them dropped. Even now you can barely mention overtime flying on our forum without having to add a bunch of disclaimers.

I'm am very familiar with one of the UAL pilots and their actions. I told my friends that knew this person to stay as far away as possible and NOT participate in what was advocated because I knew UAL would not let this slide. When you are getting furloughed, your job is to take care of your family first...not spend a bunch of time kicking the company in the nuts on the way out. Those of you that say the sickout wasn't organized are kidding yourselves.

My family and I have been through multiple furloughs in my career...I undertand being angry...especially at incompetent, vindictive managment regimes. I get it. But my point is, as a union we do everything together or we do not. And with our limited leverage due to the RLA, Presidential Emergency Boards, BK rulings, etc. it is imperitive that when we take action it is in a smart, calculated, legal fashion. To do otherwise puts the effectiveness and possibly the financial solvency of our union at risk.

And as for not costing ALPA a dime, I'm sure the court costs are free? Since we lost, are we not going to pay for UALs court costs too?

As for the individuals involved, I hope ALPA protects them to the best of its ability since they have more important things to worry about than sitting in court rooms all the time.

You really don't know what you're talking about. I know everyone involved without having to hear it second hand from a "friend" and am telling you that you are wrong. Flat out wrong.

And as for not costing ALPA a dime, I'm sure the court costs are free? Since we lost, are we not going to pay for UALs court costs too?

No, not free. But you have paid nothing. Your dues are the same with no assessments (for now). That may change in the future, but the idea that we are costing you money is crazy. If that is the case, I could argue that the DAL/NWA SLI is costing me money.

So using your logic, the AIG bailout, financial institution bailout, irresponsible-mortgage-holder bailout and pending Big 3 bailout aren't costing you or I anything either, since taxes "are the same?"

NO. We are talking about ALPA contingency money here, not debt. Just like when ALPA funded DALPA's court battle or when Astar got money to fight the DHL debacle. Are you paying that back? I didn't think so. Apples to oranges my friend, but nice try..thanks for playing.;)

Pilot unions will never win here. Remember APA's "Operation Fire at Will" about ten years ago? Lasted about an hour, as I recall, before Clinton ordered them back to work.

I agree. That is why we pay dues. That is what the money is there for.

It seems clear that the injunction is on the surface a victory for managements world wide, but the converse is a most interesting thought. If the pilots go into a "You pretend to pay us and we will pretend to work" mode on all levels, there is very little that they at mgt can really do about it. The conflict dynamic is limited only by the imagination, if we allow ourselves to focus on areas that are easily tracked and quantified we are doomed to lose. We are even more doomed to lose if we limit ourselves to tactics that are legal. The laws are written by politicians who are bought and paid for by the corporations and anything that really works has been outlawed a long time ago. Kudos to the UAL guys who at least tried something even if it got whacked a bit by a court..at least they tried.

Best luck to everyone in this profession!!!

It ain't a fun time and hasn't been since 9/11 and even before on my estimate.

Having said that, I'm going to be a male gigilo in Las Vegas, I'm 6'2" and weigh 190 lbs, all muscle and a large XXXXX.

Just kidding! My wife however wishes all of the above was true!!!

I'm staying associated with aviation but will not be flying. I will however have potential job opportunities I will post.

For me/my family, it isn't about the income, but rather, the quality of life the income can make available. True, life is what you make of it. If your gone well over half of the year and it takes a day when you get back just to feel "normal" enough to handle home life.....time to do something else.

UAL ain't my cup of tea anymore. I wish all there and at all airlines well. Things will just get more interesting watching the economy tank.........

My prediction is other carriers will be parking more aircraft/furloughing more soon enough. IMO, this economic decline is on the beginning of the decline and no where near the bottom.

Again, good luck to all.

fxdwg

WRT the economy: we have been fleeced in the labor market (bk), retirement (pensions/age 65), housing market, the energy markets and now wall street. All to the tunes of 100s of billions of dollars. This money is going somewhere.

The point is: where is the next raping to occur?

Remember that we have been in decline since 1980 and in the totality of the circumstances we don't have a lot left to lose. We might as well have a good fight out of it because the end result is essentially the same...Kind of like the ending scene in THE WILD BUNCH.

That was 1997. In 1998, Northwest pilots walked and Clinton let it happen. There are many theories as to why Clinton stopped the AMR pilots strike but not the Northwest Pilots strike. One is that AMR pilot leadership WANTED him to. Another is that APA was a small, unaffiliated union (unlike ALPA with the AFLCIO) whose majority Texan members voted republican anyway. I don't know. It is interesting to note that Clinton allowed an AMR flight attendant strike for 5 days just before Thanksgiving in 1993. He called Crandall and the union and urged binding arbitration which Crandall reluctantly agreed to. In any case, it was a lot better then than now. Now, this administration's NMB members don't even release a union to strike until 5 FLIPPIN YEARS after the amendable date. I will bet a six pack that doesn't happen in the next 4 years. Any takers?

Incoming administration is going to give you Mandatory binding arbitration, if the two parties can't agree to a contract within a given amount of time. I will leave it up to you to draw your own conclusions if this is to our benefit or not.

That is the future, so nobody knows. We shall see.

FAA's take?
 

I have not read the ruling (disclaimer) but have heard that it pretty much bars pilots from adding gas or calling in fatigued. If this is true, isn't this a flight safety issue? Where is the FAA???

Not true
 

That's not true. Here it is, in part:

The important word is "concerted." If you or I personally don't fly OT, or call in sick when we are, then the company can do nothing about it--how could they? However, when you decide for me that I should not fly OT, or that I should call in sick (when I am not) all in the absence of a legal and explicit "withholding of service" directive from your union leadership...that is when the union and its members get in hot water, and eventually get dragged into court.

Now matter how dishonorable mgmt may be, no matter how legitimate your complaints are about their destroying of the company and raping of the contract (while taking bonuses for themselves), you cannot institute concerted withholding-of-service unless allowed to under the RLA.

Pilots have been sued at AA, DAL, and now UAL--and lost every time. Grass roots, whispering campaigns just don't pan out in the end. Fly how you wish, don't worry about how any one else chooses to, and when your leadership explicitly directs a certain plan of action, then implement it ferociously. That is the most effective way for a pilot's union to work, even if it doesn't generate the most immediate high-fiving, "feel-good" sensations. Sometimes the more composed, rational approach actually proves the most effective.

Keeping us from adding gas?

Just added some the last trip...still employed too.

we got all kinds of warnings-- letters , phone calls, emails, enotes etc.... stating th efollowing:

1. only call in sick , if your sick
2. pick up overtime-- aka junior and senior man all you can
3. Basically dont go out of your way to cause delays etc.
and my personal favorite
4. dont say anything derogatory about
A) the ruling
B) the judge

well last time i checked this is america so let me end this post byt stating the following:

the judge is a complete freaking moron, she got the ruling completely wrong and she cant make me pick up overtime and i will not do it.

she doesnt get it-- someone needs to put her on the stand and ask her how she would feel about taking a 40% pay cut, lose some vacation, work more hours, and if she was abotu to lsoe her job, if she would call in sick to find alternate employment.

shes is an embarassment to the freaking bench and should just retire