This is not aimed at any particular national organisation;
but isn't this what national unions are for? To improve and uphold the working conditions and standards of the industry as a whole?
It staggers me the reaction of unions and goverment when a crash/incident occurs on the railways compared to that in aviation. The unions get involved, and there is often some "we've been telling you this for years."
The subject of rosters, fatigue/tiredness & life style has been beaten to death for years; each of the 30 I've been involved with it. Nothing has been achieved. It all started with the pilots allowing the upper deck on 747-100 (crew rest area) to be sold to the companies for a few pieces of gold. The slide has been slippery ever since. The old greedy claim of wide-body pay etc. The unions, driven by the older, near retirement pilots, took their eye of the ball and the life style has been eroded ever since.
As someone says, there is all this anecdotal chit chat. Why not Balpa, or ECA, call a conference and invite CAA and operators etc. It will be very public, hopefully televised. It would be a darned sight more positive in effect than some of the junkets that go on.
The national unions are a disgrace for allowing this to happen. The miners had balls, just chose the wrong war and the wrong stratergy.
There is talk about the JAA, that old fading European conjunction, aand their suggested FTL's. Well, why not first attack the fact that no operator has implemented the compenstaion packages directed by the then EU transport commission of the early 90's, led by Niel Kinnock, or been brought to task by any union or authority for not doing so. The fact is that the transport industry was temporarily exempt from the workers social charter & working time directive; compensation measures should have been introduced by the operators (buses trains ships etc.) until a proper change in T's & C's could be devised to bring about the gains enjoyed by ground based static based employees.
The whole matter was conveniently forgotten in aviation; the unions did naff all and the operators have ridden rough shod over the whole industry. It is Hi Time that the Commission is bought to book by the ECA as to why its own directive has been so steadfastly ignored. It would go a very long way to alieving many of the problems, AND IT IS THE RIGHT of the aircrew, not some charitatble gift. Get your 1% for gawd's sake.