Tue, May 29, 2007
To Fund Efforts During Protracted Contract Negotiations
Last week,
Pinnacle Airlines pilots, represented by the Air Line Pilots
Association, International (ALPA), received access to $2 million
from the union's Major Contingency Fund (MCF) as negotiations with
management on a new collective bargaining agreement passed the
27-month mark.
The allocation provides Pinnacle pilots with the needed
resources to fully prepare themselves and their families for a
strike in the event that a fair agreement cannot be reached at the
bargaining table.
"Our 60,000 member airline pilots across the United States and
Canada stand side-by-side with our Pinnacle brothers and sisters in
their contract negotiating efforts -- what happens at one ALPA
pilot group affects all ALPA pilot groups," said ALPA president,
Capt. John Prater, when discussing the two MCF grants that the
union made this week. "Pilot professionalism has been the key to
many airlines' survival during the past five years, and Pinnacle
pilots are no exception. They deserve -- and they will achieve --a
contract that reflects their significant contributions to their
company's bottom line."
"The pilots of Pinnacle Airlines are solidly committed to
achieving our contract goals," said Capt. Wakefield Gordon,
chairman of the Pinnacle unit of ALPA. "In an environment in which
airlines such as Pinnacle are reporting industry-wide shortages of
pilots, we are not going to accept management's proposals that
would continue to make us the lowest-paid pilots in the
industry."
The Pinnacle pilots began contract negotiations in February
2005, and their contract became amendable in May 2005. A mediator
with the National Mediation Board has been helping in the
negotiations since August 2006. Although most sections of the
contract have been tentatively agreed upon, ALPA states Pinnacle
pilots and management disagree on aspects such as scope, work
rules, and compensation.
As Aero-News reported,
Pinnacle missed its most recent deadline for a settlement on March
31, which led to the removal of several aircraft under an agreement
between the regional carrier and contract partner Northwest
Airlines.
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