Airline Division News Items
Senator Kennedy Urged to Support Teamster Outsourcing Moratorium
John F. Murphy, Teamster International Vice President and Director, Rail Conference, USA, has written Senator Edward Kennedy urging him to support the addition of language to the stimulus bill currently being debated in the Senate. The language would place a temporary moratorium on any additional outsourcing of aircraft maintenance to foreign repair stations until the FAA can develop a single worldwide regulatory standard guaranteeing safety and American security are protected. Mr. Murphy stated that, "This amendment costs nothing, yet potentially saves thousands of jobs and keeps families afloat, as well as maintaining tax revenues generated by this work." See attached letter.
Oberstar Introduces Airline Anti-Trust Bill
Citing the erosion of airline competition on international routes, House Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman James L. Oberstar (Minn.) has introduced a bill to study the effects airline alliances and anti-trust immunity have on consumers. See attached press release.
Atlas Air, Polar Air Cargo Dispatchers Vote to Join Teamsters
Dispatchers at Atlas Air and Polar Air Cargo have voted overwhelmingly to join Teamsters Local 210 in New York City, Joining crewmembers who voted by a 2 to 1 margin late last year to join the union. The dispatchers cast ballots between January 12 and February 2, 2009. The dispatchers filed an application with the NMB to join the Teamsters on November 19, 2008.
Contract Negotiations
United Mechanics – There will be a meeting of the steering committee on February 11th and 12th in San Francisco. This is the second steering committee meeting to develop the union position on what should be in a new United mechanics contract. Clacy Griswold is chairman and Bob Luciano of Local 210 is the vice chairman.
Continental Mechanics – A meeting of the Continental mechanics steering committee to develop new contract language to be negotiated will be held in Los Angeles on February 24 thru 26. Clacy Griswold is also chairman of this committee and Robert Rasch, President of Local 19 is the vice chairman.
Southwest Airlines Stock Clerks – Section 6 negotiations are underway. The Teamsters Negotiating Committee met with the company on February 5th and 6th?this was the third negotiating session. More sessions have been scheduled. Tentative agreements have been reached on six articles of a new contract. Robert Rasch is the chairman of this committee.
Teamster/United Working Committee on Garage and Building Mechanics to Meet
The Airline Division has agreed to meet with United management to evaluate whether outsourcing of work currently done by QC and PV mechanics is likely to improve efficiency and lower cost for the company. A meeting of the union/company working group will take place in Chicago on Feb. 9th and 10th.
Short-Term Disability
Last week we noted that a short-term disability insurance program was in the works for Airline Division members. We neglected to note that Robert Rasch was instrumental in developing this option on behalf of the Southwest Stock Clerks.
Week in Review News Items
Labor Developments
JetBlue said Tuesday that its pilots did not cast enough votes to form a union, in the most significant organizing drive at the 10-year-old airline. The airline said that 33 percent of its pilots voted in favor of the organizing drive led by the JetBlue Pilots Association, according to results received from the National Mediation Board. The union needed 50 percent plus one vote among eligible pilots for the drive to succeed.
Airline Alliances & Antitrust Immunity
As the Oneworld alliance approached its 10th birthday on Tuesday, the bosses of the 10 airlines involved were aware the future of the group hangs on two agreements that could fly or fail within months. Already the smallest of the three global airline alliances, Oneworld is being left behind on trans-Atlantic competition by the 18-member Star Alliance and by Skyteam, analysts say. American Airlines said on Tuesday it is optimistic it will receive anti-trust immunity in the U.S. for its alliance with British Airways and Iberia.
Miracle on the Hudson
The voices are breathtakingly calm as the pilot and controllers confront a terrifying series of events: bird strikes, a loss of thrust in both engines and the impossibility of staying aloft long enough to reach any runway. The only sign of stress as the plane descends over the Hudson River is when controllers and even the pilot, Capt. Chesley B. Sullenberger III, flub the plane's call sign. But there is also a moment of disbelief. When the captain issues his final communication, "We're gonna be in the Hudson," the controller replies, "I'm sorry, say again, Cactus." Bird remains were found in both engines, as it turns out. According to officials for the nation's largest pilots union, the government is taking too long to develop useful bird-detecting radar that might prevent incidents like last month's dramatic splashdown.
Passenger Rights
One interesting snippet came out of Continental's conference call with analysts. Continental's President and Chief Operating Officer, Jeff Smisek told analysts, "We are implementing a new internal policy for 2009, whereby we will give customers the opportunity to get off an airplane during tarmac delays in excess of three hours, subject, of course, to making sure we can do that safely." This policy is relatively similar to the one that has been proposed in the consumer protection bill sometimes referred to as the "Passengers Bill of Rights." The Senate version of the bill was re-introduced in the middle of January, followed soon after by a similar House version.
Air Travel Demand
Despite offering less capacity in January, both Southwest Airlines and American Airlines saw their traffic decline even faster. However, AirTran Airways Chief Executive Bob Fornaro said he thinks his airline will benefit from other airlines' cutbacks in a weak economy as it focuses on expanding its network beyond Atlanta. And the persistent economic downturn is nullifying capacity gains the U.S.-EU Open Skies agreement brought to the transatlantic market last year, as a soured demand environment has turned carriers to reverse their 2008 capacity surge between the United States and the European Union.
Letter To Senator Kennedy: