Perhaps someone should remind United's machinists that is was the unions at Canada 3000 that held out on concessions and how many flights a day are they operating? ----- Original Message ----- From: "Bill Hough" <psa188@juno.com> To: <AIRLINE@LISTSERV.CUNY.EDU> Sent: Wednesday, December 04, 2002 6:36 AM Subject: NYTimes.com Article: Tension Mounts Between United and Machinists > This article from NYTimes.com > has been sent to you by psa188@juno.com. > > > > Tension Mounts Between United and Machinists > > December 4, 2002 > By EDWARD WONG with STEVEN GREENHOUSE > > > > > > > CHICAGO, Dec. 3 - Executives and union leaders of United > Airlines stepped up their pressure on United's mechanics > today, seeking their approval of a $700 million package of > wage and benefit concessions that the airline says could > help it avoid bankruptcy court. > > The mechanics' vote is scheduled for Thursday, and so much > hostility toward management runs through the shop floors at > United that many mechanics say the outcome is uncertain. If > the mechanics reverse course from their vote a week ago and > approve the concessions, many say, it will be by only a > narrow margin. > > United Airlines also announced plans today to lay off 220 > pilots in early January and 132 in early February, reducing > the total to about 8,250, and to cut senior management > ranks by 18 percent, to 36 senior managers. Glenn F. > Tilton, the chief executive, said that the remaining > managers would take an average annual pay cut of 11 percent > over the airline's planned five-and-a-half year recovery > period and would forgo merit and incentive bonuses this > year. The management savings would total more than $60 > million, he said. > > Those announcements came as Mr. Tilton ratcheted up his own > participation in the campaign to sway the votes of the > mechanics. He signed a letter sent to every mechanic and > then flew from United's headquarters here to San Francisco > for last-ditch meetings tonight and on Wednesday with > workers at the airline's largest maintenance center - and > the one with the most militant machinists. > > An agreement by the mechanics to take the concessions would > give United, the nation's second-largest airline and a unit > of the UAL Corporation, the final piece of a business plan > it has presented to the federal government in an effort get > $1.8 billion in federal loan guarantees. Rejection of the > concessions would scuttle that plan and almost certainly > any hope of getting the loan guarantees, possibly forcing > United to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. > > Last Wednesday, more than half of the airline's 13,000 > mechanics turned out for a vote in which 57 percent > rejected the wage and benefit concessions. After making > some revisions on Sunday night to the concession package, > the airline and union officials organized another vote for > Thursday. There is now immense pressure for the mechanics - > from executives, from the union leaders, from pilots and > flight attendants - to reverse their earlier decision. > > Many mechanics are wary. > > "I've got the fear in me that > they'll file for Chapter 11 no matter what we do," said Joe > Schwirian, a mechanic for 17 years in San Francisco who > voted against the concessions the first time. "I think it's > in their game plan to do that. They gain too much from > filing for Chapter 11 - they can close bases or do other > things to skirt the contract." > > But Mr. Schwirian's car-pool colleague, Charlie Lincoln, a > lead mechanic and shop steward, had a different take on the > situation. "My vote was a `yes' originally," he said, > "because what bankruptcy means to us contractually is not a > good thing. The membership who voted `no' is just angry at > the company. They're voting out of anger and not knowing > the facts." > > That anger - present even among many mechanics who voted > for the concessions - burns as hot as the engines that > these workers maintain. > > It is anger at the fact that they agreed in 1994 to a deep > wage cut with no raises for six years, in exchange for > stock options that are relatively worthless today. It is > anger arising from what they call wasteful management > decisions, like United's recently aborted buyout of US > Airways, and generous executive compensation, like the $3 > million signing bonus Mr. Tilton received in September. And > it is anger raised by the steady prodding of a rival union > - the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association - that has > repeatedly tried to take over representation of the > workers. > > In fact, many mechanics say the vote last Wednesday was as > much an expression of dissatisfaction toward their current > union - the International Association of Machinists - as it > was a slap against United's management. > > "I am not a union hater but they give us no information," > said Kenneth Epps, a 43-year-old turbine mechanic in San > Francisco who said he planned to vote against concessions > on Thursday. "A lot of mechanics don't trust our employer > and a lot of folks don't trust the union. Voting no is a no > vote to the union and a no vote to the company." > > United executives tried to sweeten the concession package > by agreeing on Sunday to slightly alter a measure on unpaid > vacation days, as well as promising to try to resolve > workplace issues. > > Conditions that have made mechanics irate include the > starting times of swing shifts, the outsourcing of work to > other companies and what the disgruntled call the > ineptitude of floor supervisors and middle management. Many > mechanics have long demanded that a system be put in place > where they can voice their complaints. > > "Part of it is the machinists tend to have more of a > conflict with management than the other unions," said John > W. Budd, a professor of industrial relations at the > University of Minnesota. "The pilots are up in the air, the > flight attendants are up in the air. They can do what needs > to be done. But the machinists are on the ground. There's a > huge potential for management to be looking over their > shoulder." > > The relationship that the mechanics have with their > supervisors varies widely by workplace. This was indicated > by the radically different ways that votes turned out last > week at some of the largest bases. In San Francisco and in > Indianapolis, the second-largest site in number of > mechanics, workers voted by almost 2-to-1 to reject the > concessions. At Denver, workers voted by 57 percent in > favor of the concessions. > > "I'm cautiously optimistic that this will pass," said Steve > Adams, secretary-treasurer of the Denver local, which has > about 1,000 members eligible to vote. "But they are going > to bellyache all the way to the ballot box." > > Some mechanics and union officials who support the > concessions say the outcome on Thursday could mirror what > took place at US Airways this fall. That airline, which > filed for bankruptcy in August, had asked the machinists > for further concessions, which the leaders agreed to but > the membership rejected by 57 percent in a vote on Aug. 28. > Three weeks later, the union held a second vote after David > N. Siegel, the chief executive of US Airways, said that the > airline was in worse shape than he had previously > indicated, and the concessions were passed. > > But what is now happening at US Airways could also > encourage the United mechanics to take a firm stand against > concessions. Just three days before the first vote at > United, US Airways announced further layoffs of 2,500 > workers, with 450 of those coming from the ranks of the > mechanics. That raised the ire of mechanics at United, > several of them said. > > The United mechanics also still talk about the disastrous > business decisions that management made that led to the > company's bleeding cash: the attempted buyout of US Airways > that was blocked in July 2001 by the Justice Department; > the failed attempt to create a business jet division called > Avolar, and the seeming lack of a coherent business plan > for coping with the economic downturn of the last couple > years. > > What is more, the labor groups were promised by Gerald M. > Greenwald, the UAL chief executive who oversaw the employee > stock option plan from 1995 to 1999, that they would never > work without a contract again. That promise turned out to > be hollow, and the mechanics watched in frustration as > their contract expired in July 2000 without a deal. > > "They feel that since July of 2000, they have been > disrespected and abused," said Scotty Ford, president of > the union local that represents United mechanics. "I have > got all the people who work for me working the properties, > trying to impress on them the seriousness of the situation, > trying to convince them that the need is real." > > It was not until March 2002 that the mechanics got a > contract granting them their first raise since 1994. > Mechanics also have other bitter memories from the autumn > of 2000, when United accused the machinists of staging a > work slowdown and got a court injunction against them. > > And in the middle of negotiations for that contract, the > Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association tried to take over > representation of the mechanics. Many United mechanics are > now lobbying in favor of that union, which argues that it > more ably represents mechanics because it does not have > other labor groups as members. > > The Aircraft Mechanics have set up a phone message hotline > to United workers saying: "It is not our labor costs behind > the crisis at United or the airlines. It is greed and > arrogant management. If we give concessions today, they > will demand more blood tomorrow." > > http://www.nytimes.com/2002/12/04/business/04LABO.html?ex=1040012599&ei=1&en =936d0a85eab3cbee > > > > HOW TO ADVERTISE > --------------------------------- > For information on advertising in e-mail newsletters > or other creative advertising opportunities with The > New York Times on the Web, please contact > onlinesales@nytimes.com or visit our online media > kit at http://www.nytimes.com/adinfo > > For general information about NYTimes.com, write to > help@nytimes.com. > > Copyright 2002 The New York Times Company >