Justice at JetBlue: Union Organizing is a Federal Right

Justice at JetBlue: Union Organizing is a Federal Right

Apr 28, 2022 | Front Page, JetBlue, Organizing, Page Five, Perusals, Row 2

UNIONIZING IS A FEDERAL RIGHT; NO NEED TO BE AFRAID

Justice at JetBlue
28 April 2022

The right to organize and join a union are fundamental employment rights under federal labor laws.

JetBlue management is prohibited under federal law from ever knowing who signed an a-card or how anyone voted in a union election.

  • You have the right to join the union and to ask others to join.
  • You have the right to wear a union pin on the job, so long as it does not carry a controversial slogan or violate company policy or uniform requirements.
  • You have the right to hand out union leaflets on your own time.
  • You have the right to assist in, and encourage others to support, the union, so long as such efforts do not interfere with your work or violate posted company policy.

Here’s what management cannot do:

  • They cannot tell employees that they will fire or punish them if they engage in union activity.
  • They cannot lay-off or discharge any employee for union activity.
  • They cannot bar employee union representatives from soliciting cards or membership during non-work time, in non-work areas.
  • They cannot ask employees about confidential union matters, for example, whether you have signed a card, etc.
  • They cannot ask the employees about whether they support the union or a union representation election.
  • They cannot ask employees how they intend to vote.
  • They cannot threaten employees or coerce them in an attempt to influence their vote, or to prevent them from voting.
  • They cannot tell employees that existing benefits will be discontinued if the employees vote for a union.
  • They cannot promise or give employees promotions, raises or other benefits if they vote against the union.
  • They cannot prevent you from casting your vote.
  • They cannot know how you voted.

THESE RIGHTS ARE ENFORCEABLE UNDER FEDERAL LAW AND WE SHOULD NOT BE FEARFUL FOR EXERCISING OUR     S

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Study: JetBlue as a Career

Is Ground Operations at JetBlue a good career choice? Do you plan to work at JetBlue long-term? How do you think your time at JetBlue will end? Let us know by participating in our careerism study below.

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Union Members (And Only Union Members) Have Merger Protections

Union Members (And Only Union Members) Have Merger Protections

Apr 21, 2022 | Front Page, JetBlue, Organizing, Page Two, Perusals, Row 2, Uncategorized

Union Members (And Only Union Members) Have Legally-Binding Merger Protections

Justice at JetBlue
21 April 2022

The benefits of a Union Contract: legal protections in the event of a merger.

JetBlue’s bid to acquire and merge with Spirit Airlines comes with many questions and uncertainties. Who will run the combined airline? What future guarantees do non-union JetBlue employees have?

Which carrier’s business model will be employed?

As we have seen in merger after merger in the last 15 years, airline executives make a lot of promises to win government approval. But, many of those promises can be broken if workers don’t have a contract to protect them.

A contract guarantees that workers will maintain their employment, seniority, wages, benefits, and working conditions when a merger occurs. Without these protections, management can change almost anything it wants, whether it benefits workers or not.

However, if workers are unionized and have representation, then their rights and interests are represented throughout the process.

For example, in the ten years since American and US Airways merged, IAM- represented workers’ wages have increased by approximately 50%, seniority was integrated fairly and benefits and working conditions greatly improved. After the merger of United and Continental much the same occurred, with about 15,000 pre-merger Continental workers gaining union contracts and the protections afforded by them.

The fact is, only union representation and a legally enforceable contract can provide the much-needed protection that JetBlue GO Crewmembers deserve.

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Study: JetBlue as a Career

Is Ground Operations at JetBlue a good career choice? Do you plan to work at JetBlue long-term? How do you think your time at JetBlue will end? Let us know by participating in our careerism study below.

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Negotiations Continue in Houston

Negotiations Continue in Houston

Apr 16, 2022 | Front Page, Organizing, Page Five, Page Four, Page Three, Page Two, Perusals, Row 2, United

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Negotiations Continue in Houston

 

16 April 2022

This week, the IAM District 141 Negotiations Committee and United Airlines continued negotiations in Houston, Texas. Both parties exchanged proposals and responded to open items regarding issues in Articles 1, 4, and 10 in the collective bargaining agreements.

While we hoped to be much further along in this expedited negotiations process, we achieved incremental progress this week. We again reiterated to the Company that IAM-represented workers at United Airlines deserve the industry’s best agreements.

Negotiations will continue the week of April 25th.

In Solidarity,

Your District 141 Negotiating Committee

Olu Ajetomobi
Joe Bartz
Victor Hernandez
Barb Martin
Andrea’ Myers
Terry Stansbury
Faysal Silwany
Erik Stenberg
Sue Weisner

Michael G. Klemm

President & Directing General Chair,
IAMAW District 141

Recording Secretaries: Please print and post on all IAMAW bulletin boards.

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Machinists Union Demands Answers to JetBlue’s Potential Misuse of Taxpayer-Funded Airline Aid

Machinists Union Demands Answers to JetBlue’s Potential Misuse of Taxpayer-Funded Airline Aid

Apr 13, 2022 | Front Page, JetBlue, Organizing, Page Five, Perusals, Row 2, Uncategorized

Machinists Union Demands Answers to JetBlue’s Potential Misuse of Taxpayer-Funded Airline Aid

Justice at JetBlue
13 April 2022

The IAM is seeking answers to JetBlue’s possible misuse of funds from the Payroll Support Program (PSP), a component of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES Act).

In 2020, as a response to the destruction of demand for air travel caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Congress passed the CARES Act. The legislation, which included the PSP, provided approximately $50 billion in aid for U.S. airlines and mandated that the carriers not engage in involuntary layoffs, cut the salaries or reduce the benefits of airline workers.

JetBlue Airways received approximately $2 billion in aid, with most of it coming in the form of taxpayer-funded grants that do not have to be repaid. However, as they took the government funds, JetBlue management cut the working hours of its employees, which consequently cut their pay and benefits.

“We believe what JetBlue did was wrong,” said Richard Johnsen, IAM Chief of Staff to the International President. “JetBlue cut the salaries of thousands of ground workers by at least 20 percent. These are frontline, essential workers who risked their lives coming to work during the height of the pandemic when no vaccine was available. They’re heroes in my book and deserve to be repaid with interest by JetBlue executives.”

The IAM’s Transportation and Legislative Departments are in communication with government officials to get specific answers to specific questions.

“JetBlue just came up with $3.6 billion to buy Spirit Airlines last week,” continued Johnsen. “Some of that money needs to be put back in the pockets of JetBlue workers and not used to shower money on greedy airline executives and shareholders.”

The IAM is the largest airline union in North America and represents over 600,000 members.

 

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Machinist Union Members in Chicago Raise Money, Awareness for Guide Dogs

Machinist Union Members in Chicago Raise Money, Awareness for Guide Dogs

Apr 13, 2022 | Community Service, Front Page, Page Two, Perusals, Row 2, Uncategorized

Machinist Union Members in Chicago Raise Money, Awareness for Guide Dogs

Guide Dogs of America
13 April 2022

On Wednesday, Machinists Local 1487 in Chicago, Illinois, held its annual bowling charity to benefit Guide Dogs of America. Guide Dogs of America is the Machinists Unions’ top charity, providing service dogs and assistance at no cost for those in need across the country.

Guide Dogs of America is the Machinists Unions’ top charity, providing service dogs and assistance at no cost for those in need across the country. The organization also offers free training and support for those in need of service dogs but who may lack experience working with and using a service animal. 

Local 1487, the Machinists Union Local Lodge that reporesents some 5,000 airline workers in the Chicago area, has been a leading supporter of Guide Dogs for the past 65 years, dating back to the founding of the charity. The bowling fundraiser raised an estimated $1,500. “Welcome out!” said Greg Klujewski, the Recording Secretary for Local 1487 and one of the people that helped put the event together. “This is a great turnout,” he said. “We are raising some money for a great cause and bringing union members together,” he continued. “Both of those things are very important.”  

Guide Dogs of America breed, raise, and train guide and service dogs for visually impaired people, veterans, and children with autism. The non-profit also places dogs in hospitals, schools, and courtrooms, areas with an urgent need for service animals. These highly skilled canines become trusted companions that increase people’s confidence, mobility, and independence. The dogs can also mitigate the loneliness and isolation that many residents at these facilities may experience as they get older. 

“An often overlooked healing aspect of having a friendly-looking dog at your side is that people will often come up and pet her,” said Russ Guitlan at a recent union conference. “For a lot of the people that rely on their dog, this human connection, made through their service dog, might just be the only human interaction they may have that day,” he explained. He added that these interactions can happen daily and are always warm and healthy, which can often be difficult without a service animal working as an icebreaker. 

All programs and services, including transportation, personalized training, room/board, and postgraduate support, are provided at no cost to the recipient.

All programs and services that Guide Dogs of America provides, from breeding, training, and post-adoption support, are paid for entirely through voluntary donations from the public. Union members and volunteers who would like to make a donation of any amount in support of Guide Dogs of America may do so at Guide Dogs of America.org.

 

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United Stores Key Focus at Quarterly Meeting

United Stores Key Focus at Quarterly Meeting

Apr 11, 2022 | Front Page, Organizing, Page Three, Row 2, Uncategorized, United

Machinists Union Meets With United Management to Discuss Stores’ Operations at the Airline

United Airlines
11 April 2022

The Machinists Union and United Airlines met last week to discuss issues related to the airline’s warehousing operation, known as “Storekeeping,” or “Stores.”

The meeting is a quarterly event that both sides have participated in for the past ten years. At this quarters’ meeting were company managers and executives with oversight over the airline’s Stores workplaces and union representatives, including Assistant General Chairs and Stores Grievance Committee members.

“These meetings are essential because they allow us to have face-to-face discussions with key company decision-makers,” said Joe Bartz. Bartz is an Assistant General Chairman for District 141 of the Machinists Union and helped host the meeting with fellow AGC Troy Rivera. “We can get together and resolve workplace issues on the spot,” he said. “It’s extremely helpful for us to maintain these points of contact, so that we have the situational awareness we need to represent our membership on the front lines,” he continued. 

This Stores meeting focused on various issues, including new hire and transfer integration and seniority concerns. The safety of Stores workers was also a key topic, emphasizing possible risks associated with landing gears and the enormous aircraft tires that Stores workers have to handle. 

This quarters’ meeting was hosted by the unions’ District 141 Assistant General Chairs Joe Bartz and Troy Rivera. It included a delegation of Stores union representatives from major United Airlines operations across the country. 

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