I use to be a union rep for my ex-airline (not JQ) and can say it is a massive challenge at EBA time. What all the other crew don't see, is the behind the scenes work and negs that go into forming a proposed EBA - it is a massive exercise.
In-fact hours, if not days can be spent discussing one word, in one clause that can make huge differences to the outcomes for crew.
What I will say though is that crew have to be the driving force behind their Reps - as Reps are there to Represent the crew. If you have a large amount of issues, then you need to voice them to your Reps, who if they have enough people with the same issues, can then change their own tactics.
It's worth remembering that with hundreds of crew, you'll get people who want hundreds of different things. Sadly that isn't possible, Reps and the FAAA (or whatever union) can only propose so many things to the company and at the end of the day, only a few generalised things will be proposed.
Finally, it's worth considering a few points...
1. The only way for a successful outcome to any EBA talks, is through presenting a united front to the company. You have already failed. Any JQ management reading this board has just seen that some crew are not happy with the union, their reps and what they are doing. This creates a gray area that the company can expliot through their communications to the crew. Whether or not you get everything you want isn't the concern, because here in the real world, you won't always get your way. You need to consider every FA in your organisation, not just yourself when you make a informed decision to vote. YOU MUST PRESENT A UNITED FRONT, YOU MUST!
2. Of course both sides will use scare tactics - the union will threaten protected industrial action and the company will threaten tactics too. Welcome to the real world - you have to be informed and make an informed choice about what is a scare tactic and what is a fact.
3. What you have to realise, is that you won't run a mile with every EBA - you'll only run a few feet. Over the years though, you'll run your mile and more. The whole point of an EBA is to improve things overtime. Any improvement is better then none at all.
4. Both sides have to give and take - an EBA has to be win/win for the employees and company. You can't expect a pay rise, allowance increase etc etc unless you are giving too. You and your reps need to identify a balance between giving and taking and work out where to draw the line.
5. You need to communicate to your reps what your "must have" items are as a group. These are the items, that each and every FA would be willing to strike over. For my talks, this was our minimum rest - we would not have allowed a reduction in our minumum rest, we would have walked away. These are the point/s that effect your life the most, that would have the biggest impact on your work/life balance and quality of life.
6. The worst thing about FA's is they only ever see the $$. DO NOT vote on something just based on the money. Read the EBA carefully, ask questions, consider your work/life balance. Money isn't everything.
Finally, you have to think about the future. You should never, ever vote on something because you have been forced to, feel forced to or have your jobs threatened. Youare voting on something that has the potential to change not only your jobs and lives, but the jobs and lives of hundreds, if not thoasands of people in the years to come. You have a duty to leave the company, in a better way then you found it - you have a duty to ensure that those whoare with the company after you, have better terms and conditions then those before you - this progression is vital in securing the terms and conditions of Australian workers in the years to come.
So many mistakes have been made by unions in the past, that have allowed for overseas bases and indeed JQ to degrade the conditions of airline employees in Australia. JQ pilots have just voted in an EBA that has essentially degraded the conditions of pilot employment for generations - you don't have to follow them down that path - you can secure the future if you wish.
Finally, from what I have seen in the past, protected industrial action achieves little for both sides. The company loses money, you lose money but moreover the support from others (including the public) quickly disappears. The most successful outcomes, come from healthy and open discussions and relationships between the union, their customers (YOU!) and the company. Remember that.
You are at a turning point in the evolution of Jetstar - which path you take is upto you - you can live a divided existence and achieve nothing (just look at QF LH and the QF thread on this board, if you want an example) or united you can achieve something for the future.
Take this post however you like, but from an outsider, it is very obvious that you need to regroup, be united and become more educated about what your EBA and indeed EBA talks are really about.