Sir James

Heard that the seniority list has finally been merged at US Airways. How'd it shake out, as in who got shafted and who made out golden?? Thanx.

AAflyer

Well if you run over to flighinfo.com there seems to be a lot of the East guys got F%cked...... I have only read what was posted, have not seen the actual integration. Word has it on the ALPA site there is a audio announcement.

Regards,

AA

CaptainMark

IMPORTANT MERGER COMMITTEE REPORT – MAY 3, 2007

The Arbitration Panel issued its Opinion and Award creating the merged West and East system seniority list today. We have posted that Opinion and Award on the web site together with this Notice.

From the beginning of the process, the Merger Committee reminded all of our pilots that it was unlikely in the extreme that Mr. Nicolau would adopt either Committee’s position in its entirely and that, no matter what the result, some of our pilots would feel aggrieved by the decision. As we predicted, the Award does not adopt the West Committee’s position in its entirety. But the list created does respect virtually all of the key and fundamental concepts the West Committee advanced. While we urge you all to read the Opinion and Award yourselves, this brief summary captures its primary points.

First, the Award rejects the East Committee’s strongly advanced assertion that date of hire or length of service should control the list integration process.

Second, the Award adopts the position that the West Committee consistently advanced from the beginning of the hearings; namely that furloughed East pilots should be placed below all West pilots on the seniority list. The East position (DOH adjusted by LOS), had it been adopted, would have placed nearly two thousand furloughed East pilots ahead of Dave Odell (our junior pilot) and many other West pilots. The Award adopted our position on that important issue; Dave Odell is placed one number senior to Dean Colello, the most senior East pilot on furlough as of the date the merger was announced. We cannot stress enough the importance of this component of the Award. Had Mr. Nicolau placed furloughed East pilots ahead of active West pilots, the careers of West pilots from the top of the list to the bottom would have been adversely affected forever.

Third, by adopting our position on the furloughed East pilot placement issue, the Award effectively adopts our view of the proper placement of the CEL pilots – they are treated as “Constructive Notice” pilots and are placed on the very bottom of the integrated seniority list.

Fourth, we acknowledged from the beginning of the case that the East pilots were entitled to some limited protection for wide-body flying, in as much as West pilots did not bring any wide-body flying to the merger and America West had no pre-merger stated plans to introduce wide-body equipment into the fleet. During the hearings, we took the most narrow view of what those protections should be, arguing that only flying for the Captain positions on the 9 A330s that US Airways brought to the merger should be reserved for East pilots for a short period of time. The Award adopts our view that some wide-body protection for East pilots for a limited period of time is appropriate, but goes beyond what we had proposed by protecting B767 International flying as well. While we presented strong arguments against that position, we knew from very early on that Mr. Nicolau would be sympathetic to an argument pushing in the direction of protecting B767 flying, and the Award does, in fact, adopt that view. However, it does not implement the extreme position that would have resulted if the East Committee’s position had been adopted. Under the Award, flying on the 9 A330s and 10 B767s AAA brought to the merger is protected for the AAA pilots by a combination of the placement of 517 East pilots (423 of whom are active East pilots – the number required, using East staffing ratios, to fill the CA and FO positions on the 9 A330s 10 B767s US Airways brought to the merged carrier) at the top of the integrated list and the reservation of CA and FO positions on those 19 aircraft to these East pilots for 4 years from the date of the Award (May 1, 2007) or until the effective date of an amendment of the Age 60 retirement FAR, whichever comes first.

Fifth, the Award then ratios the West pilots with the remaining East active pilots (through East pilot Joe Monda – the last active East pilot on the day the merger was announced) on a status and category basis using the staffing formulas in place on each airline.

Sixth, the Award recognizes that placement of a block of East pilots at the top of the list, without a balancing protection for West pilots, would result in providing East pilots not only protection for flying associated with the 9 A330s and 10 B767s US Airways brought to the merger, but would also effectively give East pilots preference for flying on any increase of these aircraft types or other wide-bodies (A340s, A350s, etc.) beyond the original 19 A330s and B767s or for new narrow-body aircraft. To accommodate this problem, the Award allocates flying on additional A330s or B767s and on other wide-body aircraft on a 2 to 1 ratio, irrespective of seniority, and on new narrow-body aircraft on a 1 to 1 ratio for 4 years from the date of the Award.

Finally, the Award incorporates the standard no bump-no flush condition as well as the Eischen EMB 190 Award. It is silent on the joint MEC B757 agreement, but we believe that is an oversight, as it was an agreed to Condition and Restriction between the two Merger Committees.

No seniority integration award ever satisfies all pilots. And, of course, none of us can predict what the future will bring to the company. But we feel comfortable in saying that by our assessment, our pilots’ career expectations (both up-side growth and down-side protection against furlough) have not been diminished by the Award. There is no intermingling of furloughed pilots – pilots without jobs – within our working pilots. We have been guaranteed prompt access to any new wide-body flying not on the books when the merger was announced and we will shortly have pilots within the range sufficient to hold bids even on the wide-body aircraft US Airways brought to the merger.

We would like to say that the Award brings to a conclusion the Merger Committee’s work and hope that is so. But history teaches us that good-faith disputes (and some that are not brought in good faith) arise even after awards are issued. If they do, we will of course continue to keep you informed and continue to represent your interests to the fullest extent possible. Additionally, please keep in mind that this Award will not go into effect until after a joint agreement has been negotiated unless all parties agree to put it in place sooner. When the Award does go into effect, the list will be scrubbed of all pilots who have retired or otherwise left the company in the interim.

Finally, although we have said it before, we want to repeat our thanks to our MEC for their support throughout this long process and for their confidence in our ability to do our jobs without micromanagement. And, most particularly, we want to thank all our pilots – those who helped us by doing research and testifying as circumstances required, and those who simply acknowledged their support of our efforts over these last two years. Your support and your confidence were the principle strength that helped us focus on our single task of protecting and advancing your careers.

Our plan for the next several weeks is to let you read and absorb the Award and formulate any questions you may have. Later in May the Merger Committee will conduct open meetings in both PHX & LAS to explain in detail the entire process of our seniority negotiations, mediation, arbitration, and the final Award. In addition, we will display all of the exhibits presented in arbitration for your review. These sessions will include a Q & A forum, providing the opportunity for you ask any questions you have about either the Award itself, the process or how the Award will effect you personally. For those of you unable to attend these face-to-face meetings, we will also be conducting conference calls to answer questions. All dates, times, and locations of these meetings will be sent to our pilots via blast e-mail and postings on the ALPA website. We look forward to seeing you at these meetings

RedeyeAV8r

You've obviously never been through a Merger...............................

In a merger everyone gets scr**ed except the guy who ends up #1.....

jsled

ALPA merger policy states: A. preserve jobs B. No windfalls C. Maintain same or better pay D. Maintain same or better status E. Preserve career expectations. No mention of "date of hire" anywhere in the policy.

I have said all along that all the furloughed guys should be placed behind the most junior AWA guy. After all, furloughed = furloughed. I am glad that the ALPA policy worked as advertised.

rickair7777

I'm glad cactus didn't get the 'ol bone.

Sir James

Thanks, Captain Mark. Interesting read.

mike734

How is that fair? It is a total windfall for the junior AWA guys. My friend there has was an active pilot for USAir for 14 years, furloughed for the last 4. He has 18 years with USAir! If and when he goes back he will be junior to a AWA relative new hire! My 45 year old friend will have to listen to some 30 year old AWA guy tell him he is too fast at the marker! Considering it is the USAir guys who retire in great numbers for the next few years (500/yr), he should go back to some kind of ratio when recalled. That makes sense.

JoeyMeatballs

Well USAIR could of went under, and he could of been out of a job...............all depends on how you look at it

jsled

DOH or age has nothing to do with this. The AWA new hire was a junior F/O before the merger, and he is a junior F/O now - no windfall. Your bud was furloughed before the merger, and he is furloughed now.