UPS Mechanics Preparing to Return to Talks With Federal Mediator
This week, representatives of Local 2727 met with the Company to complete the Joint Interpretation of all articles as requested by the Federal Mediator. After two sessions, the Joint Interpretations were accomplished on Wednesday. Additionally, agreement was reached on one article that was previously not fully agreed to, with a Joint Interpretation reached on that Article as well. All language that had been agreed to in the remaining open articles has been subjected to the Joint Interpretation process as well.
Attorneys for the Company and Union are currently engaged in the final editing of the Joint Interpretation. Both parties have notified the mediator of the progress made this week, and she has requested the parties to return to negotiations as soon as possible. Based upon both parties availability, it is hoped that a return to the table can occur shortly. The mediator is also working with both parties to set the final week, with dates to be announced as soon as they are confirmed.
With UAL/CAL Merger Complete, “Single Carrier Status” Request Filed with NMB
In a sent to the Airline Division today, United Airlines management advised Airline Division Director David Bourne that the merger of the two carriers into the worlds’ largest airline, has been completed.
Michael Bonds, Executive VP of Human Resources and Labor Relations also noted in the letter that all existing labor contracts on both properties will remain in effect, pending modifications through separate or joint negotiations. The Airline Division has contracts in effect at both carriers and groups have been working on common language where applicable.
The airline has also notified the National Mediation Board of its desire to have the Board consider grant “single carrier status” and for the Board to determine whether a merger of two carriers has resulted in a "single transportation system" for purposes of collective bargaining under the Railway Labor Act, 45 U.S.C. § 151 et seq. (the "RLA").
“This is an exciting day for the employees of both carriers and the airline industry,” said Director Bourne. “While we still have negotiations ongoing, we have been very pleased with the openness and desire by both management teams to work with our groups to make this transition and the negotiations as productive and smooth as possible.”
Division Director tells AirTran Members, “Acquisition Had Been Anticipated”
In a letter to AirTran mechanics who are members of Local 528, Airline Division Director David Bourne told them that the Airline Division had anticipated the merger potential for several months.
“We have been working behind the scenes on what we had long anticipated would be a merger of AirTran and another carrier,” the letter stated, “As is the case with most of these events; it is impossible to know the principal players and the specifics until just before they are announced. However, based upon our information and knowledge of AirTran and its potential suitors, we worked on what would be necessary to best protect you during any potential merger.”
“As is our practice, we will not take a public position yet on the merger,” said Bourne. “Our primary focus is to ensure that the contractual provisions that are in place for our members remain in force and that moving forward, we ensure that jobs and careers are protected,” he concluded.
Teamsters, TWU Join to Call for Passage of FAA Reauthorization Bill
In a joint letter to key Senator’s, Airline Division Director David Bourne and TWU President John Conley have called on the Senate to pass the FAA Reauthorization Bill. In the letter dated September 15th, they wrote;
“On behalf of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters and the Transport Workers
Union of America, AFL-CIO which represent more than 112,000 aviation worker
we urge you to pass the FAA Bill into law.
As you know, the legislation addresses safety measures which are of great
importance to our membership and the flying public. For example, it closes safety
sensitive security and legal loopholes at foreign aircraft repair stations.
Additionally, the bill will improve various safety programs such as the Aviation
Safety Action Program (ASAP); set new guidelines regarding cabin air and
temperature quality; establish a cabin crew fatigue study, and grants jurisdiction to
OSHA for flight attendant safety and health including whistle blower protection.
The bill also closes the legal loophole which permits FedEx Express, and only
FedEx, to avoid unionization because it was granted Railway Labor Act coverage
for employees who properly have coverage by the National Labor Relations Act.In
addition to correcting this FedEx special interest legal loophole,the bill will put
FedEx on equal footing with its competitors.
The provisions above, and others contained in this bill will enhance our air safety
system and protect the flying public and our more than 112,000 members who
provide the services that make the system work.
Each of our organizations believes that this legislation will make our air system
safer, and we urge you to pass the FAA Bill.”
The letter was sent to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, (D-NV) and Senator’s Jay Rockefeller, (D-WVA), Kay Bailey Hutchinson, (R-TX), Jim DeMint, (R-SC), Byron Dorgan (D-ND)
Week In Review News Items
Labor Developments
Continental said it reached a tentative labor agreement with the IAM, the union representing its 9,300 flight attendants. On Sept. 10, Continental, which is known for having fairly harmonious labor relations, reached a tentative agreement on a new contract with its 3,700 mechanics represented by the IBT…and some 20,000 flight attendants at Delta began voting Wednesday on whether all flight attendants at the airline will be represented by a union. About 1,900 Delta flight attendants are based in the Twin Cities, and union organizers held a rally Wednesday morning at the airport's transit station to show support for the union on the first day of voting.
Two unions are ratcheting up their drives to represent 48,000 TSA screeners and other employees awaiting word from their new leader about whether they’ll be allowed to collectively bargain. The AFL-CIO-affiliated American Federation of Government Employees – which is vying against the smaller, independent National Treasury Employees Union to exclusively represent TSA workers – held a “solidarity” event yesterday at Logan International Airport, where it’s trying to gain the backing of 900 employees.
Legislative & Regulatory
The Justice Department says China Airlines has agreed to plead guilty and pay a $40 million criminal fine in a price-fixing conspiracy. According to a charge filed in federal court, Taiwan-based China Airlines joined with cargo carriers by agreeing during meetings on components of cargo rates that were to be charged for shipments on some routes to and from the United States.
Airline Industry Finances & Structure
Southwest will buy AirTran for about $1.4 billion, the company said Monday, allowing it to expand in some key smaller U.S. markets it doesn't already serve. Southwest and AirTran said the new airline will operate from more than 100 different airports and serve more than 100 million customers…and a lot of silly things are being said in the wake of the announced takeover of AirTran by Southwest. So long as American’s management remains remotely sane and rational, American won’t be merging with anyone anytime soon. The reasons are simple: (1) American’s stock is too beaten down and (2), American’s costs are too high.
United and Continental closed a deal on Friday that will create a new No. 1 airline in the world, ending Delta's two-year hold on the top spot. The transaction puts the two airlines in the same holding company, United Continental Holdings Inc., which will spend the next year combining them into a single airline…British Airways, American Airlines and Spanish carrier Iberia have signed off on a long-awaited strategic alliance that will see them cooperate on flights between Europe and North America.
Miscellaneous
A new survey of 170 North American corporate travel managers says that the corporate travel budget increased this year by 5.5% – but not because companies are sending more people back on the road. The National Business Travel Association's latest survey says budgets are going up mostly because hotels and airlines are discounting less, pushing prices higher. Travel managers expect budgets to grow by another 4.5% in 2011, the article says…this week, Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano is pressing countries around the world to use “strip-search machines,” low-power x-ray and radio wave scanning devices that reveal what is underneath travelers’ clothes…and Continental Airlines will begin charging for food on Oct. 12, ending its holdout as the last major carrier to offer free meals on its flights.