4 Contracts Head to Mediation

The TWU Joint Negotiating Committee representing American Airlines Fleet Service, Stock Clerks, Simulator Pilot and Ground School Instructors, and Flight Simulator Technicians filed for federal mediation Dec. 15. The move came after 11 days of intense “super session” negotiations failed to produce an agreement. They now join the Pilots Union and TWU Flight Dispatchers in mediation. TWU has been in talks with the carrier for the better part of 2008.

“To say I am disappointed would be a gross understatement,” said TWU Air Transport Division Director John Conley. “It is difficult to distinguish between arrogance and ignorance,” said Conley bluntly in referring to the company’s “comprehensive” proposal of December 12.

Conley said that the TWU negotiators came to the table in this most recent round of super talks with an open mind to the company’s position in a recessionary economy. “We negotiated with a full understanding of industry challenges; we considered forward looking seminal contract changes while protecting and enhancing the economic interests of our members,” he said. “We did not ignore the competitive realities or economic frailty of the current environment. In fact, our proposals were anything but destructive, toxic or unrealistic.”

But, according to Conley, American didn’t come to the table with a similar open mind. “The company came to the table with a small carrot and big demands –demands that were short sighted, unrealistic, impotent efforts to achieve what other carriers could only execute in a bankruptcy court room,” he charged.

Conley added that the union’s negotiating committee had presented “resourceful solutions” that addressed the company’s long term needs in substantive ways “while protecting current and future members.” He said that the union’s proposals “were countered with nothing but the same lethargic, uninspired, one sided demands that are the hallmark of AA negotiating tactics.”

He said as the union prepared to move forward in mediation, TWU would not be so forthcoming. “Since our efforts went unacknowledged and undervalued, we will be hard pressed to consider cornerstone subjects such as these in future negotiations,” he said.

Conley concluded that, “in the end, we negotiated with the intent of satisfying the interests of both parties. American squandered an opportunity to achieve equilibrium and long term competitive parity by overreaching,” and by demanding that the union leave the “unborn” behind. “We remain unequivocal in our commitment to our members, our future members, and the future of our Union.”

Negotiations for TWU represented Maintenance and Related employees are scheduled to resume in mid January.