Talking with individuals involved in the FDA process, while the MEC negotiated with the company they tried to let them (management) know that they were lowballing the offer.
The MEC sold it to the crewforce because of the new seats and the scope--we really would be hosed here if we didn't have the new seats with this age 65 mess (read seriously overmanned, instead of just overmanned).
The Company failed to offer enough to attract anything but very junior folks, with the exception of a few at the top.
It was not the Union that blew it. It was our company that like you said talks a lot about safety, but when it comes right down to it runs things based purely on cost.

Big difference in trying to make your union better and complaining about an organization of which you are not a member!

It's the bottom line, none of the bean counters care until we park a jet because of a safety issue.

ya mean due to fatigue?

You dragging up history?? Almost 6 month old message!

1 E MEC Chairman

I dont think all of this "mess" and dysfunction has anything to do with the label on our union organization. ALPA, FPA, whatever you want to call "us" as a union. I feel it has to do with two things mainly.

First, it has to do with the mentality, wants, education, and needs of the membership. I dont think as a group that "we" have a clue as to what a Union is all about and what it takes as a group to get what we want. For example, look at the flying of disputed pairings, or open time flying when our negotiations are not moving along very well. Some rationalize that it is "their contractual right" to fly this stuff. I would argue that it is "their contractual right" to also not fly it. What is the difference in the two mentalities? The first is narrow minded and selfish; IMO of course. The second is the realization that we do have leverage that will work if all would use it or, you just dont like flying crappy trips or extra. Most of us are sheep, IMO. Look at the LOA. 68%! And the fact that it was sold to us by our leaders the way it was. Hindsight is 20/20. But it shouldnt have taken hindsight to see what was wrong with the LOA!

Secondly, the Union leadership comes from the membership. So, you could have some leaders who could have some negative aspects from the paragraph from above. And if you have an incoherent and "independent contractor" membership, that gives no guidance to our leaders on where we will stand when push comes to shove with the Company. It also allows them to sell us something because we will not educate ourselves on what is being sold to us. They said the LOA was the best we can get, proponents of hysteria name calling, and the vast majority follow like sheep. All you had to do was compare what we had, and what we were being offered. Not all that complicated.

A worn out quote is that we are the Union. It happens to be the truth. There are quite a few of us who do get it. The problem is that there are to many who dont.

Well said!

Unhappy with FDX ALPA/ALPA NAtional.....what to do?


What if Fedex Pilots Association merged with Independent Pilots Association to form a new Cargo Pilots Association?

Albie, would that work???

FPA + IPA ››› C P A

And.....you could recall a Union President, that forgot who he worked for, with a vote by the membership.........not his sycophants.