Originally Posted by
J.O.
Without reading all the fine print, I assume that the injunction was granted because in the eyes of US labor law, when the union took a collective action to refuse duty that they as a group have routinely done, it is in fact a form of strike action. If accepting overtime and junior assignments is something they have traditionally accepted, they need a strike mandate (a.k.a. a vote) prior to changing that.
Let me translate it for you since you apparently missed it.
A company pisses off it's employees.
The employees act differently today than they did in happier times previously. They decline non-mandatory overtime and find more rewarding endeavors for their free time. Work or play? They chose play.
Most companies outside the US airline business would realize that we screwed up and the employees must be rewarded enough to make the economic choice to come to work instead of play. Capitalism at it's finest.
Not so fast in the land of the free. The scumbag airlines have adopted the tactic that instead of a commitment of respect for the negotiating process in granting new compensation agreements to keep employees happy, they have decided to use the strong arm of the law to force participation levels equal to times when the employees felt more valued. This is Stalin
.
My ancestors went to war with a superpower for a less overreach of power. The airlines are using the courts to manage their business shortcomings.