I have been led to believe PHI's explanation why they refuse to pay "Full Retro Pay" would insult a Moron with its incredibility.
Also heard almost one hundred pilots resigned from the Union prior to the strike over the handling of the situation by the leadership. Major complaint being a fair number of members wished to "vote" for/against acceptance of the company's Best and Final Offer but the leadership held off saying it was not the offer that should be accepted.
As in all of these affairs......the truth is somewhere in the middle of all the hype.
It sounds like about half of the pilots are on strike thus the union position is weak as compared to a full walkout. The company is confronted with recruiting, hiring, training, and fielding the necessary replacements before the customers start crying and demanding something be done.
The 64 Dollar question is how much slack are the other operators going to be able to pick up in the meanwhile.....and how many customers will go elsewhere as a result.
One recurring theme seems to be the younger pilots see the older pilots as wanting a pound of flesh for the past bad treatment they have received.
If that is true.....someone in management sure messed up. That should have been identified as one of the things the new owner would want to find a cure for to further weaken the Union. Perhaps they were not interested in either seeking peace and promoting a harmonious relationship or tried and the hard feelings continued notwithstanding the management's efforts.
Last edited by SASless; 30th Sep 2006 at 00:40.