July 2, 1998
ALPA, Intl
Committees
Holiday Office Closure
The MEC offices will be closed on Friday, July 3rd, as part of the long Fourth of July
holiday weekend.
Meet and Talk with the MEC
The MEC will be in the Terminal 4 breakroom on Tuesday, July 7th, from 10 AM until 2 PM
for another “Meet and Talk with the MEC” session.
Scheduling Committee newsletter
The first edition of the Scheduling Committee newsletter “Block Time” will be
going to the printer in the next few days.
Progress on the Preferential Bid System
In spite of persistent and unfounded rumors to the contrary, substantial progress IS being
accomplished towards the implementation of the Preferential Bid System. The Negotiating
Committee and the PBS team recently have had several productive meetings with Management.
This week, the Captain No-Fly issue was the subject of a meeting between our Professional
Standards committee and Management. While a complete agreement has not yet been reached,
much progress was made towards resolving differences on this thorny issue. We expect more
progress in meetings in the near future.
Mr. Pierce goes to Washington
MEC Vice Chairman and First Officer representative Darcy Pierce traveled to ALPA National
headquarters in Herndon this past Monday. Time was spent in discussions with ALPA National
officers including First Vice-President Duane Woerth, and Vice-President of Administration
Jerry Mugerditchian. Topics for discussion included the current F.A.A. investigation of
America West Airlines, the upcoming vote of the ALPA Board of Directors for our Council
restructuring, and the continuing consolidation in the airline industry and how that could
affect America West Airlines. Pierce also talked with ALPA President Randy Babbit about
these issues.
In the afternoon, Pierce and Contract Administrator Andrew
Shostack met with attorneys from two different law firms to discuss a possible retainer
agreement. The MEC has been concerned for some time that our current merger counsel,
Bredhoff and Kaiser, has prior committments with other pilot groups that would prevent
them from representing us if any merger or alliance activity began between us and one of
their clients. Making certain that any law firm we retain will not have conflicts of
interest with other pilot group clients is very important. This point figured prominently
in the talks with both firms.
While the MEC does not feel that any merger or alliance is
imminent, capable and experienced merger attorneys are in great demand. Our pilot group
needs to have legal expertise ready to go on a moments notice, if and when any merger or
alliance begins. Now is the time to arrange for counsel, not when the merger is announced
in the newspapers.
As of today, we are in the process of finalizing a retainer
agreement with a new law firm. This firm has no prior committments that would compromise
its’ ability to represent us across the table from any of the major pilot groups. The MEC
feels that this firm can do a great job of representing us if and when the need arises.
This new retainer agreement, and other information about our place in the merger and
alliance merry-go-round, will be the subject of a future Fenix Flight article.
The ongoing FAA investigation
The F.A.A. investigation continues at the normal governmental pace. No more facts have
been released to the public by the F.A.A. Rumors continue to circulate. The MEC continues
to wait, as do all of you, for official announcements about civil penalties. The MEC will
have more comments when facts are available.
The past two weeks since the F.A.A. investigation story
broke in the papers has been trying for us all. Facts are scarcer than hen’s teeth.
Stories in the press recycle the same few bits of information we have already read. The
MEC encourages you not to focus on the rumors, but to wait for the situation to develop.
In the meanwhile, try to keep your cool, both in the flight
deck, and by the pool, and enjoy a safe Fourth of July weekend.
That’s all for this week. Don’t cut deals. Know your
contract. Fly your contract. The next scheduled Hotline update will be Thursday, July 9th.
- Holiday Office Closure
- Meet and Talk with the MEC
- Scheduling Committee newsletter
- Progress on the Preferential Bid System
- Mr. Pierce goes to Washington
- The ongoing FAA investigation
| MEC Hotline | ||
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