PNCL, know a little history
12-22-2012, 05:12 PM
#1
Can't abide NAI
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PNCL, know a little history
....
DECLARATION OF WILLIAM A. ROBERTS
William A. Roberts, under penalty of perjury and in lieu of affidavit as permitted by 28 U.S.C. § 1746, declares as follows:
1. I am currently the Assistant Director of the Representation Department of the Air Line Pilots Association ("ALPA" or "the Association"), and have been in that position since September 1990. I have been employed on the professional staff in the Representation Department since 1977. The Representation Department provides staff support to the pilots at ALPArepresented carriers who participate in the negotiation, administration and enforcement of collective bargaining agreements. I am an attorney and a member of the bar of the District of Columbia. I am also an inactive member of the Virginia and Florida bars.
2. ALPA currently represents approximately 66,000 pilots in the United States and Canada employed by 43 airlines. All of ALPA's U.S. collective bargaining relationships are governed by the Railway Labor Act ("RLA"), the statute that regulates labor relations in the airline and railroad industries, except for one small aviation company with less than 20 pilots that performs contract flying for the U.S. government. ALPA's members reside in every state in the United States, including the State of North Carolina.
3. ALPA is a unitary labor organization, meaning that it does not have any local, subsidiary unions. Rather, it is a single, unified organization, ultimately governed by a single Board of Directors composed of elected officials drawn from every carrier within the organization, as set forth in Article VII, Section 2 of ALPA's Constitution and By-Laws. These same elected representatives also serve on airline-specific coordinating councils known as Master Executive Councils ("MECs") at their respective airlines, as set forth in Article IV, Section I of the ALPA Constitution and By-Laws. A true and correct copy of ALPA's Constitution and By-Laws is attached as Exhibit 1 hereto.
4. Since obtaining bargaining rights at CCAir, ALPA has negotiated a series of collective bargaining agreements with the carrier, the most recent of which became effective on November 6,1998. That agreement currently remains in effect and does not become amendable until November 6, 2002. A copy of that agreement is attached as Exhibit 2 hereto.
5. CCAir, formerly an independent regional airline based in Charlotte, North Carolina, was purchased by the Mesa Air Group ("MAG"),headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona, in June 1999. MAG, headed by Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board of Directors Jonathan Ornstein, owns two other regional airlines, Mesa Airlines, Inc. and Air Midwest, Inc. ALPA has been certified as the exclusive representative of all of the pilots at all of these airlines pursuant to the RLA. Mesa and Air Midwest pilots are covered by a single ALPA collective bargaining agreement, which is separate from the
ALPA contract covering the CCAir pilots.
6. After CCAir was purchased by MAG in mid-1999, CCAir management repeatedly pressed its pilots to amend the existing, in-force agreement to reduce the currently applicable pilot wages and working
conditions. The CCAir MEC Negotiating Committee met at management's request to discuss financial relief on numerous occasions. Eventually, CCAir began to threaten to shut down the Company if its bargaining demands were not met. By letter dated March 15, 2002, Carter Leake, President of CCAir, informed ALPA President Woerth that, pursuant to the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act that, "effective July 1, 2002 CCAir will permanently shut down flight operations. This will result in the termination of all of CCAir's flight deck crewmembers represented by ALPA." A copy of that March 15, 2002 letter is attached hereto as Exhibit 3. A similar letter dated March 15, 2002 from Mr. Leake to the CCAir pilots, informing them of a planned July 1, 2002 shutdown of operations, is attached hereto as Exhibit 4. During the course of the negotiations in 2002, the Company drastically reduced its aircraft fleet and furloughed more than 50% of the pilot group. On April 17, 2002, under threat of further mass layoffs or a shutdown, the CCAir MEC negotiators succumbed to this management pressure and agreed to a proposed 10 point outline of a tentative concessionary amendment to the existing agreement. A copy of that proposed tentative agreement is attached hereto as Exhibit 5. In early May 2002, the ALPA pilot negotiators tentatively agreed with CCAir on a draft of the proposed full language fleshing out this proposed agreement, which is attached as Exhibit A to Plaintiff's complaint. Subsequently, the CCAir pilots voted to ratify that concessionary agreement.
DECLARATION OF WILLIAM A. ROBERTS
William A. Roberts, under penalty of perjury and in lieu of affidavit as permitted by 28 U.S.C. § 1746, declares as follows:
1. I am currently the Assistant Director of the Representation Department of the Air Line Pilots Association ("ALPA" or "the Association"), and have been in that position since September 1990. I have been employed on the professional staff in the Representation Department since 1977. The Representation Department provides staff support to the pilots at ALPArepresented carriers who participate in the negotiation, administration and enforcement of collective bargaining agreements. I am an attorney and a member of the bar of the District of Columbia. I am also an inactive member of the Virginia and Florida bars.
2. ALPA currently represents approximately 66,000 pilots in the United States and Canada employed by 43 airlines. All of ALPA's U.S. collective bargaining relationships are governed by the Railway Labor Act ("RLA"), the statute that regulates labor relations in the airline and railroad industries, except for one small aviation company with less than 20 pilots that performs contract flying for the U.S. government. ALPA's members reside in every state in the United States, including the State of North Carolina.
3. ALPA is a unitary labor organization, meaning that it does not have any local, subsidiary unions. Rather, it is a single, unified organization, ultimately governed by a single Board of Directors composed of elected officials drawn from every carrier within the organization, as set forth in Article VII, Section 2 of ALPA's Constitution and By-Laws. These same elected representatives also serve on airline-specific coordinating councils known as Master Executive Councils ("MECs") at their respective airlines, as set forth in Article IV, Section I of the ALPA Constitution and By-Laws. A true and correct copy of ALPA's Constitution and By-Laws is attached as Exhibit 1 hereto.
4. Since obtaining bargaining rights at CCAir, ALPA has negotiated a series of collective bargaining agreements with the carrier, the most recent of which became effective on November 6,1998. That agreement currently remains in effect and does not become amendable until November 6, 2002. A copy of that agreement is attached as Exhibit 2 hereto.
5. CCAir, formerly an independent regional airline based in Charlotte, North Carolina, was purchased by the Mesa Air Group ("MAG"),headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona, in June 1999. MAG, headed by Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board of Directors Jonathan Ornstein, owns two other regional airlines, Mesa Airlines, Inc. and Air Midwest, Inc. ALPA has been certified as the exclusive representative of all of the pilots at all of these airlines pursuant to the RLA. Mesa and Air Midwest pilots are covered by a single ALPA collective bargaining agreement, which is separate from the
ALPA contract covering the CCAir pilots.
6. After CCAir was purchased by MAG in mid-1999, CCAir management repeatedly pressed its pilots to amend the existing, in-force agreement to reduce the currently applicable pilot wages and working
conditions. The CCAir MEC Negotiating Committee met at management's request to discuss financial relief on numerous occasions. Eventually, CCAir began to threaten to shut down the Company if its bargaining demands were not met. By letter dated March 15, 2002, Carter Leake, President of CCAir, informed ALPA President Woerth that, pursuant to the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act that, "effective July 1, 2002 CCAir will permanently shut down flight operations. This will result in the termination of all of CCAir's flight deck crewmembers represented by ALPA." A copy of that March 15, 2002 letter is attached hereto as Exhibit 3. A similar letter dated March 15, 2002 from Mr. Leake to the CCAir pilots, informing them of a planned July 1, 2002 shutdown of operations, is attached hereto as Exhibit 4. During the course of the negotiations in 2002, the Company drastically reduced its aircraft fleet and furloughed more than 50% of the pilot group. On April 17, 2002, under threat of further mass layoffs or a shutdown, the CCAir MEC negotiators succumbed to this management pressure and agreed to a proposed 10 point outline of a tentative concessionary amendment to the existing agreement. A copy of that proposed tentative agreement is attached hereto as Exhibit 5. In early May 2002, the ALPA pilot negotiators tentatively agreed with CCAir on a draft of the proposed full language fleshing out this proposed agreement, which is attached as Exhibit A to Plaintiff's complaint. Subsequently, the CCAir pilots voted to ratify that concessionary agreement.
Last edited by Bucking Bar; 12-22-2012 at 05:28 PM.
12-22-2012, 05:12 PM
#2
Can't abide NAI
Thread Starter
Joined APC: Jun 2007
Position: Douglas Aerospace post production Flight Test & Work Around Engineering bulletin dissembler
Posts: 11,989
7. Article XVIII, Section 1 of ALPA's Constitution and By-Laws (Exhibit 1 hereto) requires the prior approval of ALPA's President before any pilot group enters into contract negotiations. Article XVIII, Section 1 further provides that no collective bargaining contract or other agreement can become effective and binding "unless and until they bear the signature of the President."
8. The ALPA Administrative Manual provides governing policies to ALPA officials, members and staff on numerous matters as a supplement to the ALPA Constitution. Section 40 of ALPA's Administrative Manual is titled "Collective Bargaining" and sets forth the policies of the Association that relate to that subject and are applicable to all ALPA-represented pilot bargaining units. A copy of Section 40 is attached hereto as Exhibit 6.
9. Section 40, Part 3, y[ C.3 of the ALPA Administrative Manual provides that "[p]rior to Presidential signature... agreements... shall be reviewed by the Representation Department, which shall then make a recommendation regarding signing to the President based on compliance of the agreement(s) with
ALPA's stated goals and policies concerning collective bargaining." Section 40, Part 3,111[ C.4-5 provides that a pilot group that disputes a Presidential decision not to sign an agreement may appeal that decision to the ALPA Executive Council, composed of all of ALPA's nationally-elected officers, which has authority to override the President's decision.
10. Article 40, Part 6 of the Administrative Manual provides that a prerequisite to any concessionary agreement includes, among other things, the opening of a carrier's books by management for inspection and analysis by the union, a factual objective review of the company's financial condition and need for relief, the provision of a detailed economic recovery plan for the company, and appropriate quid pro quos for the pilots for any economic concessions that they may provide, including the provision for "snap-back" provisions to restore the concessions after a date certain or when they are no longer necessary.
8. The ALPA Administrative Manual provides governing policies to ALPA officials, members and staff on numerous matters as a supplement to the ALPA Constitution. Section 40 of ALPA's Administrative Manual is titled "Collective Bargaining" and sets forth the policies of the Association that relate to that subject and are applicable to all ALPA-represented pilot bargaining units. A copy of Section 40 is attached hereto as Exhibit 6.
9. Section 40, Part 3, y[ C.3 of the ALPA Administrative Manual provides that "[p]rior to Presidential signature... agreements... shall be reviewed by the Representation Department, which shall then make a recommendation regarding signing to the President based on compliance of the agreement(s) with
ALPA's stated goals and policies concerning collective bargaining." Section 40, Part 3,111[ C.4-5 provides that a pilot group that disputes a Presidential decision not to sign an agreement may appeal that decision to the ALPA Executive Council, composed of all of ALPA's nationally-elected officers, which has authority to override the President's decision.
10. Article 40, Part 6 of the Administrative Manual provides that a prerequisite to any concessionary agreement includes, among other things, the opening of a carrier's books by management for inspection and analysis by the union, a factual objective review of the company's financial condition and need for relief, the provision of a detailed economic recovery plan for the company, and appropriate quid pro quos for the pilots for any economic concessions that they may provide, including the provision for "snap-back" provisions to restore the concessions after a date certain or when they are no longer necessary.
Last edited by Bucking Bar; 12-22-2012 at 05:28 PM.
12-22-2012, 05:13 PM
#3
Can't abide NAI
Thread Starter
Joined APC: Jun 2007
Position: Douglas Aerospace post production Flight Test & Work Around Engineering bulletin dissembler
Posts: 11,989
11. Shortly after receiving the full language of the proposed tentative agreement in early May, the ALPA Representation Department, pursuant to its responsibilities under Article 40, Part 3,'1 C.3 of the ALPA Administrative Manual, conducted a comprehensive analysis of the proposed agreement. This
analysis involved detailed economic comparisons between the proposed CCAir amendment and the existing CCAir agreement, as well as a detailed comparison with the ALPA contract governing the Mesa and Air Midwest pilots. As a result of this economic analysis, on May 30, 2002, the ALPA Representation Department sent a detailed memorandum to ALPA President Captain Duane E.
Woerth analyzing the proposed CCAir contract amendment and recommending that it not be signed. A copy of this May 30 recommendation, with its accompanying attachments (except for the proposed agreement), is appended hereto as Exhibit 7.
12. President Woerth has followed the advice that the Representation Department provided in this May 30 memorandum and has not signed the proposed April 17, 2002 amendment to the CCAir pilot agreement.
13. On June 7, 2002, Captain Woerth wrote to the President of CCAir, Carter Leake, advising him that the proposed amended agreement cannot become effective without his approval and suggesting a meeting to "address a number of problems with this tentative agreement. . . ." (Complaint Ex. B).
CCAir refused to hold such a meeting and instead carried out its threat to furlough most of the remaining pilots. In the fall of 2001, just prior to the time that the furloughs began at CCAir, there were approximately 139 pilots at the carrier. Today, there are approximately 30 pilots remaining.
14. No CCAir pilot, including Plaintiff Steven Kalik, has taken any steps to ask the ALPA Executive Council to overturn the decision of President Woerth not to sign the proposed amended agreement, as set forth in Section 40, Part 3, J[y[ C.4-5 of the ALPA Administrative Manual.
15. According to ALPA's membership records, Plaintiff Steven Kalik's furlough became effective as of May 1, 2002. During the period between February and April 2001, the Company retired from its fleet all of its Jetstream turboprop aircraft, which was the aircraft type Kalik had been flying.
16. Since the fall of 2001, bargaining for a successor collective bargaining agreement has been ongoing between MAG management and the pilots of Mesa and Air Midwest. The proposed new CCAir agreement, if placed in effect, would be a major obstacle to the ability of the Mesa and Air Midwest
pilots to negotiate improved wages and benefits.
17. On December 10, 2001, after ALPA became convinced that labor relations policy for all of these carriers was being determined centrally by Mr. Ornstein and that management was pursuing a centralized bargaining strategy, ALPA filed a representation proceeding before the National Mediation Board ("NMB") known as a "single carrier proceeding." The single carrier filing asserted that CCAir, Mesa and Air Midwest constituted a single transportation system centrally controlled by Mesa Air Group and Mr. Ornstein, and that all of the pilots at these carriers should be treated as a single bargaining unit, or in the parlance of the RLA, a single "class or craft" of employees.
18. On July 1, 2002, after a lengthy investigation, the NMB ruled that CCAir, Mesa, and Air Midwest were all centrally controlled by MAG and Mr.Ornstein as a single transportation system under the RLA, and that all three pilot groups constituted a single class or craft (bargaining unit) under the RLA. A
copy of the Board's July 1, 2002 decision in this matter is attached as Exhibit 8 hereto.
19. Collective bargaining negotiations for the Mesa and Air Midwest pilots are continuing and are scheduled for July 8-12, 2002 at Mesa Air Group Headquarters in Phoenix, Arizona. Mediated negotiations under the auspices of the National Mediation Board are scheduled for August. In light of the NMB's July 1, 2002 ruling that CCAir is part of a single pilot bargaining unit with these other two airlines, ALPA will be pressing at these talks for a "global" agreement covering all of the pilots within the MAG system, including the CCAir pilots.
I declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct to the best of my knowledge and belief.
Executed this 3~d day of July, 2002.
analysis involved detailed economic comparisons between the proposed CCAir amendment and the existing CCAir agreement, as well as a detailed comparison with the ALPA contract governing the Mesa and Air Midwest pilots. As a result of this economic analysis, on May 30, 2002, the ALPA Representation Department sent a detailed memorandum to ALPA President Captain Duane E.
Woerth analyzing the proposed CCAir contract amendment and recommending that it not be signed. A copy of this May 30 recommendation, with its accompanying attachments (except for the proposed agreement), is appended hereto as Exhibit 7.
12. President Woerth has followed the advice that the Representation Department provided in this May 30 memorandum and has not signed the proposed April 17, 2002 amendment to the CCAir pilot agreement.
13. On June 7, 2002, Captain Woerth wrote to the President of CCAir, Carter Leake, advising him that the proposed amended agreement cannot become effective without his approval and suggesting a meeting to "address a number of problems with this tentative agreement. . . ." (Complaint Ex. B).
CCAir refused to hold such a meeting and instead carried out its threat to furlough most of the remaining pilots. In the fall of 2001, just prior to the time that the furloughs began at CCAir, there were approximately 139 pilots at the carrier. Today, there are approximately 30 pilots remaining.
14. No CCAir pilot, including Plaintiff Steven Kalik, has taken any steps to ask the ALPA Executive Council to overturn the decision of President Woerth not to sign the proposed amended agreement, as set forth in Section 40, Part 3, J[y[ C.4-5 of the ALPA Administrative Manual.
15. According to ALPA's membership records, Plaintiff Steven Kalik's furlough became effective as of May 1, 2002. During the period between February and April 2001, the Company retired from its fleet all of its Jetstream turboprop aircraft, which was the aircraft type Kalik had been flying.
16. Since the fall of 2001, bargaining for a successor collective bargaining agreement has been ongoing between MAG management and the pilots of Mesa and Air Midwest. The proposed new CCAir agreement, if placed in effect, would be a major obstacle to the ability of the Mesa and Air Midwest
pilots to negotiate improved wages and benefits.
17. On December 10, 2001, after ALPA became convinced that labor relations policy for all of these carriers was being determined centrally by Mr. Ornstein and that management was pursuing a centralized bargaining strategy, ALPA filed a representation proceeding before the National Mediation Board ("NMB") known as a "single carrier proceeding." The single carrier filing asserted that CCAir, Mesa and Air Midwest constituted a single transportation system centrally controlled by Mesa Air Group and Mr. Ornstein, and that all of the pilots at these carriers should be treated as a single bargaining unit, or in the parlance of the RLA, a single "class or craft" of employees.
18. On July 1, 2002, after a lengthy investigation, the NMB ruled that CCAir, Mesa, and Air Midwest were all centrally controlled by MAG and Mr.Ornstein as a single transportation system under the RLA, and that all three pilot groups constituted a single class or craft (bargaining unit) under the RLA. A
copy of the Board's July 1, 2002 decision in this matter is attached as Exhibit 8 hereto.
19. Collective bargaining negotiations for the Mesa and Air Midwest pilots are continuing and are scheduled for July 8-12, 2002 at Mesa Air Group Headquarters in Phoenix, Arizona. Mediated negotiations under the auspices of the National Mediation Board are scheduled for August. In light of the NMB's July 1, 2002 ruling that CCAir is part of a single pilot bargaining unit with these other two airlines, ALPA will be pressing at these talks for a "global" agreement covering all of the pilots within the MAG system, including the CCAir pilots.
I declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct to the best of my knowledge and belief.
Executed this 3~d day of July, 2002.
)
12-23-2012, 03:26 AM
#10
Can't abide NAI
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Joined APC: Jun 2007
Position: Douglas Aerospace post production Flight Test & Work Around Engineering bulletin dissembler
Posts: 11,989
Originally Posted by ShyGuy
Quick question, in regards to the career enghancement agreement with Delta management and the 9E MEC, without any input from the Delta MEC/DALPA. Wasn't this a violation of Section 1 of the Delta PWA?
That is why the safeguards in Section 40 of the Admin Manual matter. They function to avoid this kind of mess and if they had been followed we very likely would not have a problem.
ALPA's Admin Manual and Constitution are not optional. There are even provisions of Section 40 s specific to crisis bargaining. The Pinnacle agreement seems to blow off these Sections as well.
Pull up the Admin Manual, Section 40 and search snap back. A contract should have a provision to restore pay once the Company has recovered from its crisis and is profitable. However, the Pinnacle agreement actually has what I would call a NO snap back provision. Six months after the Pinnacle pilots might try to improve their pay, the Company is allowed to pull all of the committed jets in Pinnacle's fleet.
I've got no dog in that fight, so I removed all of the areas where the Pinnacle pilots are getting set up for failure in my letter. The deal smells like low tide in so many ways.
Wychor is a very smart and experienced guy. I don't know what he was thinking. Maybe he thinks he can roll Moak. Who knows?
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