Carl Spackler

NWALPA has no leverage whatsoever to negotiate anything. Our management won't even be there in 6 months. DALPA had leverage. DAL needed a scope change in order to not have to park NWA wide bodies. DALPA used that leverage that affects NWA to obtain a no furlough clause for Delta pilots only.

NWALPA were there every step of the way. Nobody says that NWALPA didn't show up. Everyone agrees that all parties were at the table and were able to approve every item in a new joint contract, but they were unable to agree on an SLI. That's what ended the negotiation.

The DALPA Chairman talks about the high integrity level of his team. He also states: "Make no mistake about it, when the merger closes NWA pilots will be Delta pilots." Some folks here say, oh no...he just meant you'll be Delta pilots in spirit. If the integrity is really high, it would be easy to amend the LOA to share the pain of furloughs (with whoever the generic partner is for Delta). That didn't happen. Now DAL guys here want to say it's because NWA pilots are poor negotiators, or idiots, or lazy, or greedy, or..... I can only hope that the DALPA Chairman is more of a statesman than most DAL guys on this forum.

I don't understand your analogy, but it did make me hungry.

Carl

iaflyer

NWALPA had leverage - just not enough leverage to get everything they wanted. I doubt the DALPA got everything they wanted too - but I imagine they comprimised. For example, DALPA might of been able to get higher pay raise for senior guys, but maybe the no-furlough clause had to go. I don't know, but I think there is only so much "negoitating capital" that can be used in this deal.
In my opinion, and from I can read from between the lines, it seems that DALPA did the best they could do and got the agreement that was LOA 19. Now the Delta pilost get to vote on LOA 19 and give it the thumbs up or down.

If the situtation was reversed and NWALPA had gotten an agreement but not DALPA, I'd be badgering my MEC to get an agreement, even if it's not what everyone wants. I think an agreement is better than arbitration. I don't want to go to work for 30 more years and sit next to a guy who's bitter at me. I have some NWA friends and the red book/green book stuff is nuts over there.

Yes and what's frustrating is that both sides don't have real proof of what the last positions were.

NWALPA can get whatever agreement they want until we agree on a joint contract. Tell your MEC to talk to management rather than giving press conferences. I think the NWALPA MEC wants it all - and these days we can't just have it all - not with the price of gas where it is. It's a bum deal, sure, I'd like to make more money but it's just not in the cards.

Alright, maybe the analogy was bad, but I was just trying to show that sometimes waiting for the others just takes too long and you have to go it alone.

Scoop

Carl,
You are writing in the past tense - this story is still being played out.

I think there are a few members from both pilot groups on this forum who would not be my first choice for a job at the State Department.
Scoop

Roll Inverted and Pull

Carl, you have been all over every thread in the merger forum. We understand your position very well. A deaf, dumb and blind man could understand it. Don`t be a whiner, suck it up man. The Delta merger boys are gonna get what they can, same as your boys. I wouldn`t expect less from any of them. The Red and Green boys think they got screwed, so did the Norhteast, Western and Pan Am boys.

Carl Spackler

Wow...what a well thought out persuasive post.

Carl