Official Announcement -- next step?
 

http://boston.bizjournals.com/boston...7/daily27.html

Thursday, March 20, 2008 - 5:04 PM CDT

An arbitrator ruled Thursday that Pinnacle Airlines Inc. violated pilots' contractual rights when management refused to meet and discuss labor protection issues with them following the purchase of Colgan Air in early 2007.
Pinnacle Airlines Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Pinnacle Airlines Corp.
According to a press release issued by the Air Line Pilots Association International, which represent Pinnacle pilots, the arbitrator found that Pinnacle Airlines Corp. (Nasdaq: PNCL) and Pinnacle Airlines Inc. were "alter egos functioning as a single employer at the time of the Colgan purchase."
By claiming separate organizations, Pinnacle Airlines Corp. alleged it was not legally bound by the contract pilots signed with Pinnacle Airlines Inc.
The arbitrator ruled that Pinnacle's "consistent failure to distinguish between the two corporate entities provides persuasive evidence that Pinnacle Airlines Corp. and Pinnacle Airlines Inc. were alter egos functioning as a single employer at the time of the acquisition of Colgan by PNCL."
The arbitrator concluded that based on that finding, the company violated the labor protection section of the collective bargaining agreement with the pilots, according to the ALPA press release.
It was not clear late Thursday what the next step would be in the on-going labor negotiations and how Pinnacle would be affected by the ruling.
Pinnacle pilots and management have been in protracted contract negotiations for more than three years. A mediator assigned by the National Mediation Board has been involved in the process since fall 2006.
Based in Memphis, Pinnacle Airlines operates as Northwest Airlink and Delta Connection and flies more than 130 modern jet aircraft.
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I am really starting to wonder what leverage we have at all in this industry:confused: Even after a ruling against them by the arbitrator they can simply say no and nothing can be done.
I am frustrated for you guys and gals.

stfd..........

my heart goes out to you pinnacle guys. this is the kind of stuff that made me and tons of other people leave trans states. blatantly violating everything, and getting away with it.

makes me wonder, though, where are nevets and angels and airwaves and those other geniuses who feel that all it takes in this world is a "legally binding contract" to make everyone happy?

the next step, according to our mec, is to file the lawsuit and sue the company for the violation. according to one of the reps we could have the lawsuit filed by the end of next week. but then its in the court systems and the trial could begin by the end of the month, or the end of the year. i think once it does go to trial it will be an easy win for us. just a matter of getting there.

And what would you do if you didn't have a legally binding contract when your company violated the federal and or state labor laws? You would have to get your own lawyer to fight it. When ALPA files the lawsuit in federal court, it will work its way out. But with ALPA, your lawyer is already paid for. This fact is a deterrent to many companies. Unfortunately, some companies would rather waste time and money to have a federal judge put an injunction on them before they do anything.

Any other questions?:rolleyes:

uh huh...not quite a reality based concept there is it? must be nice to live in dreamland where having ALPA makes everything all better. too bad it's not like that in the real world.

i'd leave and go work for a company that actually likes its employees, with or without a so-called "legally binding contract". oh wait, i already did that.

Seems union protection is merely for the union heads not the people it represents. If you strike they shut down regroup and/or hire scabs, tough anymore being a pilot when you just give and give and get little in return.

Maybe we pilots need to start national groups and work together as a whole not just on the company or union level . I think if 100,000 pilots decided to strike for 5 days Fedex, AA and Ups etc would whip the faulty party into shape real quick. Maybe time to organize a true pilot union of sorts for the pilots that would have some clout.

Set realistic salaries based on equipment size and seniority and work rules that are national standards and then one for all, all for one. maybe that would do the trick. That way we could do away with all the other unions and just have one pilot group represented by pilots for pilots that served us all. That way every place would be a descent place to work.

We need to get rid of the railway labor act. Period. Look at the longshorman. Strongest union in the USA... we should all be so lucky.

If only. Of course they don't have "Shiny ISO Container Syndrome" to contend with... :rolleyes: