Chief Brody has a number of valid points.
What you will find many BMI pilots consider fair is the fact that they integrated the BMed pilots on Date Of Joining. This was initially fround upon by the BMI pilots but were instructed by BALPA HQ that this was the most legal and fair way of dealing with this subject under TUPE.
It is for this reason that many BMI pilots will feel particualarly letdown by BALPA if BALPA then does a monumental U-turn in what it advocates as the legitimate formula for bringing two companies together. I am no legal expert but by my reckoning they would be seen as offering impartial and false advise if anything other than what they advised BMI staff were employed in this example. I'm not saying its right or wrong but BALPA can't say that combining seniority lists HAS to be done in a particular way because it's the law to one group and then spin a different line when the circumstances are repeated a couple of years later, unless the law has changed?
With regard to DanAir, CityFlyer etc, the same point applies. However, in these cases the TUPE law MAY have changed since that time, which may well be why what was deemed a solution then (bottom of the seniority list) may not be applicable now.
Notice that there are a number of MAYs in my posting. I am merely suggesting and hoping that someone who actually is current and familiar with TUPE law would shed some light on this subject. At this time there is so much rumour and conjecture, that it is difficult to see the wood from the trees.
As a final point and something that I have read about somewhere in one of these forums, why isn't BALPA playing a more active part? What have they negotiated in terms of the proposal? Is there not something that they can do whereby an agreement is reached between the two Company Councils that they will not allow workers from either Company to operate the others routes. If this were the case, BA/BMI pilots could both continue to exercise their rights to Industrial Action without fear of the other party operating their routes temporarily. I believe that BA BALPA has about a 98% membership and BMIs membership is well into the majority of pilots. With so few pilots in either airline not BALPA members, if the Union decread that it's members should not break any picket lines, I would expect that there would be insufficient resources to cover the majority of IA'ed company's flying programme.
Food for thought?!