May/June Alpa CX Article
 

Just got my May/Jun 2002 Airline Pilot Magazine, the official magazine of the Air Line Pilots Association in the United States.

There is a four page article entitled:

"Cathy Pacific Pilots on the Brink? Does ALPA have a Dog in This Fight, (Or Is Their End of the Titanic in the Water?)"

If anyones interested in it, I'll scan it as a jpg and email it out to you. It'll take a couple of days to do, as it's a holiday here in the US, but as I always do I eventually get around to it.

By the way, I have an Asian wife, and am planning on an earlyy retirement from United, and will find work in Asia.

However, I would not cross the CX hiring ban even as a direct entry Captain - and I am typed in both the 777 and 767.

Don't worry about those taking upgrades.....if the 49 get their jobs back, they'll eventually fall to their own seniority.

And if new hires boycott, the command position is absolutely worthless if there is no first officer the aircraft stays in the chocks.

United was shocked in the late eightes when 25 767 copilot positions were unbid in ORD - because the pay was so low, people kept on their narrowbody equipment . At that time new hires were not allowed by union contract into the right seat, and it posed quite a problem for United.

By the way, those new hires that honored the strike in 1985 and did not take a job (Class of 85) wound up ahead in seniority of the 539 pilots that hired on as scabs, albeit it took five years to accomplish that.

Kim

No direct entry captains at CX. Would be an interesting article though.

Here's the article, Cathay Pacific Pilots on the Brink

The article is not badly written and, of course, serves to further the HKAOA's cause.

However, it is disingenious to argue about the effects of pay cuts without at the same time pointing out that the cost of living in HK has gone down dramatically since 1997; the cost of accommodation alone has decreased by between 30 and 50%, depending on area.

Above all, the gist of the article (and, it seems, of the HKAOA's campaign) is to bring some sort of "civil service" culture to a listed company, ignoring the factor of "market value" of professions - hardly an undertaking that will garner much support in an entrepreneurial place like HK!

An OK article which blows it when stating: "The firing was pure intimidation, a union-bust straight up, designed to be random enough to put the fear in all pilots that they might be next, no reason given," says Capt. Nigel Demery...

What a load of crap! It was not random. Each and every one was carefully chosen. You could be next if you abused sick leave (taking an extra 55 days a year - ie sicka trip a month), broke FTL by traveling ULH to work (Europe to Hong Kong), then operating within hours of arrival in HKG, had a history of unfit conduct (beating up security guards and being bailed out of jail by the Capt)...

Over 200 pilots made the list, the top 49 were chosen. Only an idoit would accept the AOA scare tactics.

pilot...

I am interested in the aspect. Have you SEEN the list or is this what T'Liars PR machine wants you to believe?

PA

Now we are getting to the gravy strokes.

The specific cases you cite can account for some of the basings pulling the old sickie on day one of their block plus a couple of others pulling various stunts but 200 names and a half century of scalps is hard to believe.

It must have taken years to build the list which begs the question of timing as much as it does of process.

Surely it is counterintuitive to suggest the timing was not designed to bust the AOA balloon.

If there are valid reasons and I am sure that in some cases there well may be then what is wrong with some closure on this.

If there were valid reasons for sacking someone then there is a contractual way of handling it.

"For no paricular reason" as stated by CX means it was a tactic designed to intimidate the rest of the union into bending over and taking what comes.

pilotabroad, you scream too loudly to be believable. Not a pilot at all me thinks.