I'm one of the lily-livered, spineless europhile chickens who followed balpa's recommendation.
I figured that a company making £80m+ profit a year could quite easily afford to run on 60% of its pilot workforce (I think I'm being generous as to the 40% of pilots who would actually have gone on strike) plus whatever subleasing it would have to do to run its program for six months. Especially as striking pilots would not be paid.
I personally could not afford to do that. And I know that the members of our PC would not have given up lightly - they did their sums too, and probably came to the same conclusion.
The answer is we need HIGHER balpa membership in eJ to win this thing. With 80% plus we could make a cohesive threat to them - 55% just won't cut it. The last thing we want is the existing members to give it up now and make things even easier for management in 2004.
Like many have said - it may be s!!t but it's the only show in town. So I'm not being chicken this time - I'm staying in.