WP: Northwest Employees Get Little Support

[DeepModem Mom]

Northwest Employees Get Little Support
Union's Isolation From Other Groups May Be Opportunity for Airline

By Amy Joyce
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, August 23, 2005; Page D01


In a world known for solidarity and brotherhood, the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association stands almost alone among labor unions, even as 4,400 of its members walk the picket line.

The Northwest Airlines Corp. mechanics and cleaners who went on strike Saturday are the first workers at a major U.S. airline to hit the picket line in seven years. But, despite major upheaval in the industry where many pilots, flight attendants and other workers have had to make concessions in pay and benefits, the striking workers are finding little support from other unions.

AMFA, which grew in recent years by winning members away from other unions, is an outsider in the labor movement. "They are a go-it-alone union. They are proud of that," said Richard Bank, director of collective bargaining with the AFL-CIO. "They made their living raiding AFL-CIO affiliates with that message. So it's rather surprising to see them now calling for solidarity with their cause."

But what happens to AMFA and its Northwest mechanics could have a broad impact on organized labor and the airline industry, well beyond Northwest Airlines, according to labor experts.

"This is a perfect target for Northwest," said Charles B. Craver, a professor of labor law at George Washington University. "It's a union that is sort of weak. It's not AFL-CIO. If this were , Northwest might be a little more nervous."...


http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/08/22/AR2005082201410.html

[bleedingheart]

1. Regardless...Labor should stand with Labor...this is not a time

for the other Unions to be shitting on each other....it should be a time of Solidarity...

[merwin]

6. Maybe those other unions don't mind 25% paycuts!

[Puglover]

8. Sooooo

how do you define "shitting on each other" Northwest has asked the IAM for 170,000,000.00 of concessions but AMFA quickly stepped up to the plate and told NWA they need 260,000,000.00 so AMFA could have raises. That didn't make them any friends at the IAM. Also the mechanics used to be IAM until AMFA promised them the big bucks which they got in their contract. They also got AMFA to agree to outsource 36 percent of the workload FOR those big raises thus screwing the junior members of their own union.

[Egalitariat]

2. It's a bad sign when the union walks out and company doesn't miss a beat

I hope their leaders are able to better define their value to the company and sell it to the company in a way that benefits the mechanics.

[spinbaby]

4. They only want you to think they're not missing a beat

On NPR this morning they reported that NW had 80% of their flights running late.

[Southpaw Bookworm]

5. Not entirely missing a beat

The plane that landed in Guam with the broken landing gear was from a regional line that was being maintained by replacement workers for several weeks now.

[peacebuzzard]

3. Management is using hostile iron hand strategies

A lone ranger flight attendant who walked the picket line w/ the mechanics at La Guardia while off duty was immediately fired.
(It's "bend over, stay down" or else.)
Next.

[wli]

7. I'm boycotting Northwest n/t