BoilerUP

Your colleagues at your own airline negotiated that for you...

So much blame toward ALPA as if it was some mythical entity, and yet so little recognition that ALPA is not just its elected/volunteer leadership but rather every single member that has a card and wears a pin. Everybody wants milk and honey to flow to them simply because they're union, but nobody wants to make any personal sacrifices in order to achieve it.

YOU are ALPA...if you don't like what is going on (and there's plenty to not like) you've got two choices...complain on the interwebs or ditch your apathy and actually start working to better things.

NoStep

Great line of thinking "Boiler", tried that but there's one small problem...ALPA says "thanks, but no thanks while you're furloughed". Kind of a Catch 22, eh? I'd like to help make things better for the pilot group, and maybe get some furloughees back, but not until you're recalled from furlough.

BoilerUP

Honest question: if you're furloughed, what do you expect ALPA to do for you?

NoStep

Honest answer: I'm telling you I called ALPA to fill a position where I live, so I could do for you, and was told thanks anyway!

BoilerUP

I don't understand what you're trying to say. Maybe its because I haven't had my cup of coffee yet...

Are you saying you applied for a job working at ALPA National and they weren't interested in considering you for employment?

NoStep

BTW, hope you don't get the impression I'm pinging you.

I called ALPA Nat'l to fill a volunteer position in my area, since I have background in field. Then asked if I could help out on local level for another volunteer position, and was given the same answer. That's all!

Maybe other carriers contracts are worded differently. At mine, if you worked for ALPA before furlough, it seems some people retained those positions.

GrUpGrDn

I gotta sticker and a pin, everything I hoped for and more!

higney85

1. ALPA aeromedical kept me from being grounded by a irregular EKG found on a physical.

2. ALPA national and it's lawyers helped 9E pilots file a grievance against the company worth millions when the company elected to swap 401K providers and not tell anyone. This grievance gets heard in December.

That's where "personal" lies for me, the national dept is an amazing resource to have at your disposal if you are doing union work. From legal to technical to pros in various fields that will call you personally at no cost to you its a pretty good thing. That being said a union is only as good as it's members and the leaders they elect. If you have an apathetic group and pilots running uncontested for important spots you can't expect to have a membership happy with the results.

I never said ALPA doesn't have flaws though- because they do. Prater actually reads this board (at least he told me he did and knew me by my username) so let em have it. If members don't tell leaders the problems nothing gets fixed.

bryris

ALPA has gotten so big now that their scope encompasses such a number of pilot groups that conflicts of interest are bound to exist. Rightly so, the lean seems to be towards the majors. Someone has to get the short end of the stick.

jayray

Are you sure about that? I'm pretty sure we don't get paid. Even after the Colgan deal calling in fatigued is not looked upon kindly at my place of employement.