whattimedoweland :
WW has come in to BA waving a baseball bat bringing his 'hardman' image with him from Aer Lingus.
To hammer the Unions at BA with his baseball bat! The reason the BA Board gave him the job, and not to some affable well connected city slicker.
The rest of your post sounds as if you have already admitted defeat. "Super Union" at BA? You kidding me? You'll have enough trouble uniting the Pilots seniority list, never mind getting Cleaners, caterers, drivers, part time cabin crew etc etc to align with "fat cat" 747 skippers!!! WW will massacre you.
He has come to a profit making company whose employee's have already given much and still realize we will have to give more.
True but not given to him, he'll want to see you all down to the same cost base as Emirates crews at least, then give the BALPA Rep a kick up the arse as he leaves the negotiating room with no bus fare home.
It is the manner in which he treats people
Jeezzz this is really getting sad.
and has no interest in the pensions of his workforce that has pi**ed off pilots and the rest of us.
He's just doing the job he was brought into BA for!! And for what he gets paid for just like YOU!
He does not give a sh*t about the workforce
Correct. He was a Cadet Pilot, Line Pilot, then Union Rep, then spent the rest of the his time in EI trying to shaft the Unions, Pilots, and "Buddies". But then again that was his job at the time!!!
You had a fight Walsh with a government subsidised airline and you won.
Wrong. EI is no more subsidised/protected than BA is. That is against EU rules. EI was/is very profitable too, probably just as healthy as BA is. Oh, and in this game there are no winners and losers. Except maybe the shareholders. WW or BALPA cannot WIN, just bleed each other till someone outside the ring throws in the towel, and everyone goes home to lick their wounds, but the BA Pilots life committed to the seniority list will feel the pain for years. Not WW.
WW did not win at Aer Lingus, yes he managed the railroad through changes in working conditions and pay in all departments through post 9/11 hysteria and creative accounting. But he failed miserably in his plan to OWN the airline through a failed management buyout bid. WW, 25 years from spotty faced cadet at the bottom of the seniority list to OWNING the Airline! Would have made a great book, but alas the real Big Boss Bertie Ahern knew what was really going on. WW's plan to mismanage the company and shipwreck the national airline, before buying it cheap with his financial cronies failed. The subsequent quick rebuild and share price increase would have made him Millions. Too bad Willie. Well at least you managed to jump ship to BA at the right time, and go back to doing what you do best, taking on Pilots, taking on your own.
The BALPA fight being talked up by pilots on this thread already looks very weak, not that hard a fight for seasoned WW.
Ornithopter -
I am however, not against striking if 40% of my pension is stolen by a management who can create other ways of solving the problem. If that inconveniences the public, it is a real shame, but as I said above, when other things have been exhausted, what can we do?
The other way of solving the pension problem is going after your Union, unity, and cost base. Things will fall like a pack of cards after that. WW IS exhausting the other possibilities! Stick together!