Atlas/Polar Leave ALPA
In a representation election for the combined group of Atlas Air and Polar Air Cargo pilots, the Teamsters were selected as their new collective bargaining agents following that organization’s filing of authorization cards and request for an NMB election. This result was not unexpected based on the contentious merger of the two carriers, the Polar Air Cargo strike in 2005—during and following which the two groups substantially disagreed on a number of issues—and the general pilot disunity that resulted. Regrettably, the IBT took advantage of such internal disputes and separated the Atlas and Polar crewmembers from their ALPA colleagues and a union with extensive professional resources, services, expertise, and influence focused solely on issues that affect the piloting profession. Unfortunately, pilots are less than 1 percent of the Teamster membership and have little influence in the general or strategic direction of that union, allocation of its resources, and the dedication of staff to pilot issues compared to the influence wielded by truck drivers and workers in warehouses, dairies, bakeries, breweries, food service, and laundries who dominate that union’s membership.
The election of ALPA by the pilots at
Colgan—where the IBT also sought representation rights and where the IBT received less than 10 percent of the votes; the
endorsement of ALPA rather than the Teamsters by the NPA Board; and the past decertification of the IBT at NetJets, UPS, ATA, and Evergreen shows that Teamster election rhetoric and promises typically give way to representation that does not benefit flight deck crewmembers.
We regret that ALPA insurance products, financial support, training programs, peer interaction, professional staff resources, and status and influence as the largest pilot union in the world will no longer be available to Atlas and Polar crewmembers. We look forward to the day when ALPA can again provide that support to them via membership in our union, which also provides them membership within the IFALPA structure, as Polar and Atlas crewmembers spend the majority of their time flying outside of this country.