APA Public News

Management's Unrealistic Deadline for JCBA Voting

posted on January 09, 2015 20:38
Management's Unrealistic Deadline for JCBA Voting
Late Wednesday evening, management confirmed to APA in writing what they
had previously stated in discussions that retro pay effective Dec. 2, 2014, will
be granted only if our membership approves the joint collective bargaining
agreement proposal no later than Jan. 19, 2015. If pilots vote to approve the
JCBA proposal after Jan. 19 but before the Feb. 24 start of the JCBA arbitration,
management reiterated that new pay rates will become effective on the next bid
month following membership acceptance. In addition, they informed APA that
once the JCBA arbitration begins, their proposal including pay rates will be
withdrawn.
APA did not receive all final contractual language until today, which would give us
10 days to conclude membership balloting under management's deadline. Jan.
19 is an arbitrary and unworkable deadline, and that's putting it charitably. It's
ludicrous to think APA and its membership can conclude this process in 10 scant
days.
During the week between Christmas and New Year's, APA's officers, negotiating
team and subject-matter experts continued working to finalize contractual
language so that the APA board of directors could reach a decision by Jan. 3.
Unfortunately, the contractual language was not completed by Jan. 3, which is
why the board voted to accept management's offer conditionally pending final
language.
Throughout the JCBA process, APA has repeatedly emphasized to management
the need for final contractual language. For example, when we presented our
comprehensive counterproposal on Dec. 17, we made it clear that our board
would need final language to review before commencing membership balloting.
When negotiations between APA and management did not produce an
agreement, management proffered arbitration on Dec. 23, stating that
negotiations between APA and management had concluded. Management
informed APA that we needed to accept their offer by Jan. 3, 2015, in order for
retro pay effective Dec. 2, 2014, to be included. Management also indicated
verbally that they wanted a conclusion to membership balloting no later than Jan.
19, 2015.

At that time, I emphasized to American Airlines President Scott Kirby the need for
APA to have final contractual language before our Jan. 23 board meeting. In
discussions with management Dec. 31, I again reiterated the need for final
language for our board to review.
This afternoon, the board established Jan. 30 as the voting deadline. The APA
leadership considers the 30th to be a reasonable deadline under the
circumstances. This timetable gives the APA membership sufficient time to
become familiar with the proposed new agreement and make an informed
decision.
If management proves inflexible and does not modify their Jan. 19 deadline and
our members vote "yes," they will suffer significant harm by losing retro pay for
December and January totaling more than $100 million. It's hard to imagine how
a difference of 11 days could be worth exacting such a heavy penalty on our
pilots.
It's ironic that we've been given an unrealistic deadline for concluding
membership balloting considering the flexibility we've shown in accommodating
management's timetable. As you may recall, an airline official stated during
American Airlines' Oct. 23 third-quarter earnings call that management would
"begin negotiations in earnest with the pilots right after" the APFA vote results
were final. This statement came after APA agreed to a 30-day extension. After the
APFA membership voted to reject their tentative agreement, management
presented their initial economic proposal to APA on Nov. 11.
This entire process has been highly time-compressed, with the JCBA
negotiations taking place during a 60-day period that included two major
holidays. Management's expectation that our members undertake the necessary
due diligence and make a decision of this magnitude by the 19th just makes no
sense.
APA has repeatedly accommodated management's timetable during the JCBA
process. If management is sincere about fostering a new culture at American
Airlines, extending our pilots the same professional courtesy would be an
excellent opportunity to demonstrate their sincerity. The alternative demanding
that our pilots adhere to an unrealistic deadline would reinforce the impression
that very little cultural change is actually taking place.
Which is it going to be?
Posted in: President