May 9, 2018 | Airlines, American, Home, The Association
Since American management walked out of talks in late March, the TWU-IAM Association mechanic and related, stores and fleet service negotiating committees have been fully prepared to resume joint contract bargaining and bring these negotiations to a successful conclusion. Instead of making a good faith effort to to reach a fair agreement with 30,000 American Airlines ground workers and get back to work, American management has opted to conduct company-controlled road-shows in an attempt to bypass your negotiating committees. This diversion only serves to prolong the process and prevent Association members from reaping the benefits of a fair joint contract.
“Enough is enough. Association members have waited long enough for a fair joint contract,” said Alex Garcia and Sito Pantoja, Association Chair and Vice Chair, respectively. “The Association has been ready to resume talks since American management walked out of negotiations, but the Company seems more interested in holding their corporate side-shows than they are in reaching a fair agreement. Each day that American management refuses to negotiate is a slap in the face of 30,000 workers.”
In late March, talks broke down as American Airlines Executive Vice President Stephen Johnson—who had never before been in negotiations—stormed out of the room because the Association rejected American’s proposals regarding medical and retirement benefits, wages, scope/job security and profit sharing, which were wholly inadequate.
“We are deeply concerned over American’s refusal to negotiate and their seeming attempt to bend Association members to their will,” continued Garcia and Pantoja. “Make no mistake, we will not bend to American’s will, we stand ready to negotiate and we are fully prepared to mobilize the Association’s significant resources and bring this process to a conclusion that provides 30,000 Association members a fair joint contact that they can be proud of.”
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Apr 5, 2018 | Airlines, American, Home, The Association
Brother and Sisters,
The TWU-IAM Association is committed to achieving on American Airlines an industry-best contract that will benefit all Association members and, consequently, be the benchmark for future airline contract negotiations. The five main issues that remain in our negotiations with American are: scope (protecting our work and jobs), affordable healthcare, meaningful profit sharing, retirement and wages.
In their latest scope proposal, the company insisted on outsourcing at least 5,000 jobs, spanning all classifications. Simply put, without protecting your jobs and the work you do, your livelihood is in danger and every other benefit gained in negotiations is useless. Their fake scope proposal is unacceptable and disrespectful.
The company’s healthcare proposal offers only the more expensive healthcare plans with inferior benefits and zero limits on future cost increases The Association negotiating committee demands that the company offer the richer Legacy U.S. Airways plans to all Association members. All Association members should have access to the best health insurance plans and we will not allow the company to eliminate those plans.
Despite American’s CEO admitting that other airlines have better profit sharing, the company’s latest proposal is clearly insufficient. They refuse to improve your profit sharing and believe they shouldn’t fairly share the industry-leading profits that Association members generated. The Association will not let up in obtaining the value that the industry’s best profit sharing plan will provide to all Association members.
In the company’s proposal on retirement, American is trying to transfer as much retirement risk away from them and towards you. Their offer even comes up short against its own internal standards. Without any self-contribution required, American Flight Attendants currently receive a maximum 401(k) company contribution of 9.9% while the pilots receive 16%. The Association negotiating committee will not allow the company to unnecessarily shift risk to you nor will we allow them to treat our members like second-class citizens.
While job security is the most important piece of any collective bargaining agreement, the Association negotiating committee is aware the Company is trying to fool us with their wage proposal. The company claims their current proposal is industry-leading, but is it really? Is it industry-leading if United wage rates surpass yours in less than a year? Is it industry-leading if you are paying more for healthcare or if your counterparts at United and Delta make thousands of dollars more in profit sharing every year? Of course not. The Association agrees that cash compensation is important, and when we have an agreement we will have industry-leading rates.
The Association will continue fighting to raise the standards by which we work and live. We will fight to own our work, we will fight to get our just compensation and we will fight to share in the record profits and growth that we generate for American Airlines. Each airline negotiation lays the foundation for the future and the TWU-IAM Association will not capitulate to American’s regressive proposal.
Fraternally,
Your Association Negotiating Committee
Apr 4, 2018 | Airlines, American, Home, The Association
Message to American Airlines:
While the TWU-IAM Association patiently waits for American to contact us, we encourage them to offer Association members the Early Out package they are promising. Don’t wait. Do it now. The Company can do that now or anytime. An Early Out package is not tied to our joint contract negotiations. American, you have our permission, but rest assured, we will not sacrifice or give up anything to pay for this.
Do the right thing, don’t make the members wait.
Fraternally,
Your Association Negotiating Committee
Apr 2, 2018 | Airlines, American, Home, The Association
Job security is the most important part of any collective bargaining agreement. And your negotiating committee is fighting to make sure it’s something you never have to worry about. But when we finally see a tentative agreement, we all know the first thing many of us will do is flip back to the wage schedule or look for a bonus. We’ll want to know if it will be any easier to make our rent or mortgage payment, to pay our kids’ tuition, or to put food on the table.
But wage increases mean nothing if that money goes to increased costs elsewhere. And what good are bonuses if our jobs are outsourced? Rest assured that your negotiating committee is cognizant of these facts, and fighting, not only to put Association members at the top of the industry in wages and job security, but to keep us there.
American Airlines, however, is looking to give with one hand and take with the other. The company, despite record profits and growth, wants to increase the cost of our health care, let us remain behind industry standards in profit sharing and retirement, and, in a particularly insulting proposal, outsource much of our work. Unacceptable.
The company claims their wage proposal is industry leading, but is it really industry leading if we have to pay more for health care? Is it industry leading if United wage rates eclipse ours after less than a year, as the company has proposed? Is it industry leading if our counterparts at other major airlines make thousands of dollars more in profit sharing every year? Of course not.
TWU-IAM Association members deserve truly industry-leading compensation, including industry-best wage rates throughout the life of the agreement. But our job security is not for sale, not at any price.
Fraternally,
Your Association Negotiating Committee
Mar 30, 2018 | Airlines, American, Home, The Association
Brothers and Sisters,
The full M&R and Fleet Association Negotiating Committees met this week with the Association Executive Committee in Washington, D.C. Your Committees were fully briefed by the Executive Committee on the negotiation sessions that were held over the last month.
As you have seen in our communications over the last week, the company’s position at the bargaining table has been concessionary, woefully inadequate and, quite frankly, insulting.
Their desperate attempt to steer negotiations away from the negotiating table by releasing twisted half-truths and lame videos are sad ploys to try tricking the membership into believing their garbage. Your Committees, unlike American, know that you are too smart to fall for that.
American’s leadership should stop leaving negotiations because their feelings were hurt and give us the proposal they owe us NOW that doesn’t waste our time or disrespect you.
The TWU-IAM Association will not relent in obtaining the value that the industry’s best contract will provide. Association members deserve as much.
We thank Steve Johnsen for his behavior that has given the Association even greater UNITY and SOLIDARITY than ever before!
Tell the Company their offer is NOT ENOUGH!
Fraternally,
Your Association Negotiating Committee
Mar 29, 2018 | Airlines, American, Home, The Association
The TWU-IAM Association bargaining committee is committed to fighting for industry-best retirement security. Aside from frozen pension and PBGC benefits that apply to pre-merger employees, today’s retirement benefits for Legacy American Airlines Association members come in the form of a 401(k) with company matching contributions while Legacy U.S. Airways Association members have a Defined Benefit Plan and a 401(k) with no matching contributions. Both retirement plans now lag behind industry standards and require improvement. The company’s proposal, however, fails to provide the retirement security that we deserve.
Steve Johnsen’s proposal falls short of industry-leading and even fails to reach its own internal standards. Currently, American Flight Attendants receive a maximum 401(k) company contribution of 9.9% while American Pilots receive 16%. In neither of these cases are employee contributions required. Brothers and Sisters, we deserve better than the company’s inadequate proposal.
Ultimately, retirement plans are about risk. American Airlines is attempting to shift as much retirement risk away from the company and to the employee as they can get away with. Your negotiating committee rejects company proposals that unnecessarily shift retirement risk to the membership and will not allow American Airlines to treat our members like second-class citizens. We are committed to fighting for and winning the retirement security we deserve.
Fraternally,
Your Association Negotiating Committee
