As previously reported our Collective Bargaining Agreement will become amendable on December31, 2008. For all of us to achieve the objectives set forth by this membership it is imperative that we become a well informed cohesive unit. In order for us to remain a cohesive unit the chains of communication had to be improved. Your Shop Stewards have been working hard to share the information given to them at recent meetings but we did not feel that alone would be enough. It is along these lines your Local Union has been undertaking the following course of action.
Back in April a memo was sent to all the Shop Stewards and Leads informing them of the importance of improving communication and forming a structure that would help to create constructive discourse between the two groups and in turn the entire membership. On May 14, 2008 the first Steward/ Lead meeting was held at the Local Union office. The turn out was good and there was some very constructive dialogue between the members. The Leads and Stewards shared their views as to what they believed was the best course of action to create, to the fullest extent possible, a united front as we embark upon the arduous process of amending our Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA). A second Steward/Lead meeting is scheduled forJuly 9, 2008. At this meeting we will update the two groups as to where we stand regarding the Local Union contract rewrites as well as continue to improve the process of creating a well informed united membership.
Your Local union has reviewed all the surveys turned in by the members of Local 210. This information was shared with the Stewards. For obvious reasons the exact priorities and wishes of this membership will not be published. We will, however, outline what the Local Union has put together as Local 210’s contract rewrite at a future membership meeting. We have tentatively scheduled a full membership meeting for August 19, 2008. Full details, times and locations will follow.
We are scheduled to meet with Union representatives from several stations throughout the system on July 31, 2008, August 1, 2008 and August 2, 1008. This will constitute the “Full System Steering Contract Rewrite” meeting. At this meeting we will begin the process of drafting a complete opening proposal. Once completed the proposal will be reviewed by the Airline Division and its’ experts (Scope Attorneys, Actuaries, Economists etc.). In accordance with the Railway Labor Act we can serve a Section 6 upon the company conveying our desire to amend the current CBA as early as September 1, 2008.
The aforementioned dates, specifically the August 6, 2008 Local rewrite meeting and the tentatively scheduled August 19, 2008 full membership meeting, were chosen to ensure we had as much information available to share with the members as possible due to the fact both meetings will be subsequent to the full system steering committee meeting scheduled for the end of July.
We would like to take this time to thank all of you who have contacted the Union office or a Shop Steward to share what you believed to be important items that need to be addressed in the upcoming negotiations. It is important to remember if you have any suggestions please share them with us. We can make any necessary amendments up to the time we make our opening proposal. Also remember the opening proposal will be shared with the entire membership, as it has been in the past.
If anyone has any comments, questions or suggestions feel free to contact a Steward or the Local Union office, thank you.