Guys I'm banging my head against a brick wall here.
I keep asking for one thing. Please answer it.
How are BALPA going to help our conditions? How are they going to make management listen and act when they don't have to?
I don't care if you think I'm a manager, I still want the answer so PM me if you'd prefer.
I would love to work for an airline that has a union that works, but from what I understand that would require a management setup that listens. We don't have that, so aren't we trying to tackle this from the wrong angle?
As a workforce we have often been likened to a group of sheep on this forum, so if it helps you understand how it feels at the moment - it's like having a useless shepherd and everyone suggesting changing the sheepdog.
So please, please, please tell me how BALPA are going to change things. I ask that of those like grim repa, aldente and others on this thread alone who are criticising my views and opinions, but not offering suggestions of their own.
Finally, to reply to Desk-Pilot:
Lets be realistic - if Ryanair do decide to close Luton Flybe, Easy and a raft of other airlines will be utterly delighted to expand into the void O'Leary leaves and you will all get jobs with airlines that believe in union recognition and don't believe in intimidating their workforce.
Realistic? I'd call that incredibly naive. Surely you don't think MOL will leave Luton and scrap those routes? Ryanair will simply take on more cadets and eastern European captains based elsewhere in Europe and fly into Luton, and where necessary fly a 'W' leg to cover those routes.
This comment will probably see me called selfish, however I am not a WWII hero (to continue a previous analogy), but I am not prepared to lose either my life in England to be based in Europe somewhere for the cause - especially when there is NO ANSWERS BEING GIVEN TO ME EXPLAINING HOW MY SACRIFICE WILL CHANGE A THING IN RYANAIR!