[QUOTE=FliesInSoup;2625231]Looks as though some pilots are wanting to recoup 2% of their wages now in favor of giving up 50% of their wages later; not to mention their QOL...[/QUOTE

Worth repeating. Frank Lorenzo would love some of these guys.

In a Cavuto interview today, a comment was made referencing the choice to take the job in the first place. Kind of morphed (as I recall) into Janus saying he was concerned about the Union's impact on the state budget (you know, livable wages, medical and retirement).

S

Well.....union membership is optional. But the contract is a benefit. That's what agency shop is all about.

How about if you opt not to be a union member, you are no longer covered by the contract? Meaning you have to do whatever the crew desk tells you to do as long as it doesn't violate FAR's? And, since pay is directly related to union bargaining, some don't want to pay the 2% up front, how about we just take that out of the equation.

You are free to not be a member, not be covered by the contract, then paid 50% less than the union members? Fair? I think so.

The problem is, guess who the airline will hire exclusively going forward: Union or nonunion?

In 15 years after the last union pilot retires, the Republican/Chamber of Commerce wet dream will have come true. An airline of non-union rugged-individualists like Slaphappy begging for scraps — all in the name of “freedom.”

This^^^

Also I would expect management to pay the non-union members the same or maybe even a bit more initially to drive the wedge in even further and fuel the theory that the union is unecessry and potentially holding people back from reaping the benefits of “free market forces.” Then once the union is off property they’ll pull the rug out. Work rules and generous benefits packages will be out the window and pay will fluctuate wildly depending on “market forces” and how much company kool aide you are willing to injest. Another casualty of this little experiment in libertarianism would most likely be safety as the most lucrative contracts and career advancement would go to the guys that “get the job done.” Oh you’re too tired to agree to an FDP extension? You’re not captain material.

Line Pilots Pull Weight, not the union.
 

Right to Work does not make you a freeloader. It gives the worker the right NOT to pay homage to a union with which he or she disagrees. Compulsory union membership or compulsory dues is unconstitutional. That is what I was referring to when I said, "make union membership optional." This has been well established. Workers aren't freeloaders. The money they pay to unions is not their leverage. The work they do on the shop floor (cockpits for us airline types) is their leverage. Without this work, union bosses would have zilch. BTW, what percentage of your dues goes to the national union? Want a union that REALLY works for pilots? Elect a union that ONLY represents your work group. Make it so that 100% of your dues goes to your pilots and your contract negotiations, etc.

Absurd....

No need to be for scraps...we’ll just unionize!!! ;D

Riddle me this: why can’t the pilots that are so against the idea of collective bargaining simply find employment at a non-union carrier? Or in corporate aviation? Then everyone is happy, no?

No. Pilots (any workers) should be able to work wherever they wish. This is America. And they should be able to do so without the requirement to pay money to a union. Some industries are set up where workers can't even apply without first paying money to a union or joining before they are employed with a company. That is clearly wrong and it is changing fast.

Independent, nonunion professional educator groups have been established in many states. These groups are providing teachers and student teachers with benefits comparable to those of the NEA and AFT, at lower dues. Many do not support any political agenda or ideas which do not directly affect education. They may also provide liability insurance protection for members, which is comparable to that offered by the NEA and AFT. The same arrangement could very easily work in the airline pilot profession.