Hedley

Delta negotiations had also stalled from what I remember. If that was the case, then filing for mediation was warranted. That is not the case with us. Both parties are meeting frequently and evidently negotiating in good faith. The RLA is a slow process, and considering that we just started over with a new team, I’d say that things are moving along pretty quick. This needs to be done correctly, not necessarily quickly. Just like fast hands in the cockpit creates problems, placing the emphasis on speed in negotiations does the same thing.

Our new MEC is using the legal procedures available to them. If negotiations reach an impasse, we will then file for mediation and potentially have a strike vote.

SquawkIdent

I was under the same impression and checked with my LEC reps. The answer was that even if we enter mediation, ALPA and the company can continue to meet without the mediator being present.

That being said though, I agree that the mediator would not make our case a priority until progress slowed significantly. Certainly not while the NC updates are somewhat positive and reporting that things are trending in the right direction.

I'm as frustrated as anyone else and suspect that we are headed for mediation. But I think we've just started playing the game for real in the past few months and our timeline with the NMB would reflect that.

I think there's validity to the argument that requesting mediation now starts the clock. But I also think that the mediation request (like a strike vote) has to be timed to maximize leverage and visibility. We get one shot at each so it has to count. Heading into the summer season would probably make more of an impact than doing it now.

evodiver

IMO, when Delta got their TA and Kirby announced publicly they wouldn't respond to our negotiations until he saw if that passed or failed, that was the day our MEC should have filed for mediation.

It doesn't matter if theirs passed or failed, if it passed, that was the floor, if it failed, the floor was going to be higher. (It would have been a deal for Kirby to settle then)

Now here we are, "Couple weeks Kirby" wasting more and more time... They weren't serious before and they aren't serious now. Sure, progress is being made, but when do you wanna call a spade a spade?

horrido27

the boldest text is literally NOT what our own union has stated,
On numerous occasions they have come out and said “far apart” only to then state a week later “progress has been made in some areas”.. but other areas are still “apart”.
At this point, they aren’t going through every section with a fine tooth comb. They have given the company our needs.
Even a week or two ago, our union came out stating the company was looking to keep some sections “as is” (vs improvements) and I also believe the term “concession” was also used a while back [either before Delta ratified their agreement.. or possibly after].

No one said Mediation is a Silver Bullet.
Mediation is the next step IF we don’t have an AIP>TA by 1st quarter results.

If they believe they can keep dragging this along, I fear they are mistaken.
If American and/or SouthWest get an agreement before us.. do we now need to pull ours and re-poll the pilot group? Surveys?
when is-
Enough Enough?
Guess it’s crazy to hear “we should have requested mediation last year” yet then hear.. “but now is not the time”
When?!

That simple question is all (some of us are) I’m asking.

Aquaticus

We are rewriting BIG sections of the contract. The minutia in these sections have gigantic repercussions. There are too many gray areas in our current contract that was negotiated over years here and there in different negotiating environments. This needs to be negotiated with the understanding that we might live with these rules for decades. I understand the short term risk of recession or bank failures etc but we need to live with what we negotiate 20 yrs past the "recession of 24" if it happens.

qltep

I’m glad some of y’all aren’t on the negotiating team or union leaders.

evodiver

Are you glad that your boss is pickpocketing you for at least 20% of your wages and countless hours of your time with your family?

qltep

No but if we went straight to mediation or a strike vote when the company is meeting with us and we are making progress then that just shoots ourselves in the foot.

evodiver

Don't be so naive.

The company doesn't have to make reserve suck so bad but they choose to.

They could allow us to trip trade, but they refuse to.

They can't fill Captain slots. (duh)

Its almost like a better contract would protect them from themselves..

Giordano Bruno

It takes weeks if not months to file for mediation, get on the calendar, get the mediator spun up, and start negotiating. It blows my mind that UALPA is not getting the process started NOW. Without mediation, DALPA would still be getting stonewalled by management. And don't get fooled into thinking the quantity of closed sections is important. The big dollar economic and high impact work rule sections are where mgmt is going to drag their feet as long as they possibly can.