Mooney - BALPA are well aware of your point, that is why the dispute is about Schedule K of our agreement and not Scope.
Northernboy -
If the deal unfairly favours BA mainline over external recruits then there will be no one interested in the job unless they are newly qualified (unlikely with a longhaul operation into JFK) or desperate
Given that BA proposes that all Lauren promotions will be on merit, not seniority, and DECs will be employed then I don't see it as a particularly good deal for the external recruits as it stands now. Anyone who see's there career as doing 6 transatlantics a month on a 757 is probably desperate already.
BALPA exists to further the interests of all its members, not just those in British Airways
You might want to keep in mind that BALPA cannot legally represent Lauren employees in certain countries. If they roll over on this one then they stitch up BALPA members in the UK and cannot do much to help the ones in Europe. This thread is beginning to have echoes of the BAR/BACX debates. BALPA best serves the interests of UK pilots by keeping terms and conditions high and dragging everyone up to the best, not by supporting schemes that drag the T&Cs downwards in the interest of helping a small number of people get a leg up. There is always someone who will do it cheaper and BALPA should be staying well clear of assisting airline management in organising a dash for the bottom.