GOM Gossip
There are two sides to every story it appears.
One of the GOM Bubba's I have bent elbows with in the past suggested I have been listening to a slanted version of the "snitch account" I posted earlier. He suggested Air Log, that Bristow company, did not seek out the fellow and did not use any ill gotten information, and opined the whole tale is one that will wind up being a GOM Myth one day.
Now we know PHI in the past sent out a letter containing a paycheck with "Zero Dollars" reminding the pilots that would be their salary if they continued towards a union thus no telling what does go on down there in the GOM during Union drives/CBA negotiations.
Now I am befuddled as to what the "real" truth is.....too many myths forming up here. At least it is a lively place to work the GOM....never a dull moment it appears.
Now we know PHI in the past sent out a letter containing a paycheck with "Zero Dollars" reminding the pilots that would be their salary if they continued towards a union thus no telling what does go on down there in the GOM during Union drives/CBA negotiations.
Now I am befuddled as to what the "real" truth is.....too many myths forming up here. At least it is a lively place to work the GOM....never a dull moment it appears.
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: Over here
Posts: 1,030
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
There is no latest. It doesn't exist. Some people have made some promises, but that's the last thing that has happened, as far as we can see. If anything further happens before my retirement, I'll be surprised.
PHI Pilots going to strike in the GOM???
Negotiations between the PHI Pilot's Union and PHI appear to have ended without an agreement. The cooling off period required by law is over. Last minute mediation attempts have failed.
PHI management has instituted pay and benefit increases consistent with their Best and Final Offer.
PHI management has filed for an Injunction in an attempt to prevent the Union Pilots from striking.
The Union has not begun striking yet....and there has been no decision announced by the Court regarding the Company's request for an injunction.
29 months of negotiation and no settlement....anyone willing to bet on the strike beginning? Who will win out if there is a strike?
PHI management has instituted pay and benefit increases consistent with their Best and Final Offer.
PHI management has filed for an Injunction in an attempt to prevent the Union Pilots from striking.
The Union has not begun striking yet....and there has been no decision announced by the Court regarding the Company's request for an injunction.
29 months of negotiation and no settlement....anyone willing to bet on the strike beginning? Who will win out if there is a strike?
"Just a pilot"
Nobody wins if the pilots strike. No matter what customers have told Lafayette, the company loses in the long run- Air Log managed to avoid a pilot's strike, the others are building fleets and capability.
Talk about driving away business, sending your customers to the competition.
There's not enough money in the world to restore internal cohesiveness and morale to PHI, after a strike. Mr Gonsolin has bet all his chips on either the pilots not striking, or management breaking the union. Neither is the winner a negotiated deal is. His pilots would be entering a hot market, experiencing the first stages of a shortage. The first week out will be a lark, the next week will be tedious, and then they'll (the pilots) start wondering why they're thinking of going back- as the hurricanes season peaks? My guess is that the EMS side is in an even more vulnerable situation.
Talk about driving away business, sending your customers to the competition.
There's not enough money in the world to restore internal cohesiveness and morale to PHI, after a strike. Mr Gonsolin has bet all his chips on either the pilots not striking, or management breaking the union. Neither is the winner a negotiated deal is. His pilots would be entering a hot market, experiencing the first stages of a shortage. The first week out will be a lark, the next week will be tedious, and then they'll (the pilots) start wondering why they're thinking of going back- as the hurricanes season peaks? My guess is that the EMS side is in an even more vulnerable situation.
Devil,
Are you in essence saying the management of PHI has picked the wrong time to force the Union hand on this?
Are the economic pressures going to force PHI to cave and meet the union demands?
Hurrican season is here however no storms are headed for the GOM currently. Ernesto appears headed for Florida and then back east to the Atlantic which gave a reprieve to the GOM.
News reports indicate the Union decided to withhold action until Ernesto was no longer a threat.
Why would a gamble to break the union be worth the risk at this time. The oil companies are making obscene profits....Exxon alone has cash holdings that exceed the networth of both GM and Ford put together. The oil companies will hot hiccup at a rate increase from PHI.
If PHI raises rates....I am sure Air Log, ERA, and all the other operators would as well....which does not cause competition issues or a loss in market share as a result of higher rates. The EMS side of PHI is more at risk in that regard vice the GOM unit.
PHI is setting on a fair bit of cash as well and is making money on the GOM side which offsets the EMS losses.
Which side stands to lose the most long-term.....PHI the company or the Stiking Pilots if it comes to a sure enough strike?
How long can a regular GOM pilot hold out without that paycheck coming in?
Can PHI replace a significant number of pilots when they cannot man the aircraft they have now without resorting to mandatory workover which is one of the grievances that has been a problem in the past prior to the impending strike?
Turnover and recruiting problems existed long before the negotiations began....and surely must be a consideration PHI must weigh in their decision on how they handle this affair.
Are you in essence saying the management of PHI has picked the wrong time to force the Union hand on this?
Are the economic pressures going to force PHI to cave and meet the union demands?
Hurrican season is here however no storms are headed for the GOM currently. Ernesto appears headed for Florida and then back east to the Atlantic which gave a reprieve to the GOM.
News reports indicate the Union decided to withhold action until Ernesto was no longer a threat.
Why would a gamble to break the union be worth the risk at this time. The oil companies are making obscene profits....Exxon alone has cash holdings that exceed the networth of both GM and Ford put together. The oil companies will hot hiccup at a rate increase from PHI.
If PHI raises rates....I am sure Air Log, ERA, and all the other operators would as well....which does not cause competition issues or a loss in market share as a result of higher rates. The EMS side of PHI is more at risk in that regard vice the GOM unit.
PHI is setting on a fair bit of cash as well and is making money on the GOM side which offsets the EMS losses.
Which side stands to lose the most long-term.....PHI the company or the Stiking Pilots if it comes to a sure enough strike?
How long can a regular GOM pilot hold out without that paycheck coming in?
Can PHI replace a significant number of pilots when they cannot man the aircraft they have now without resorting to mandatory workover which is one of the grievances that has been a problem in the past prior to the impending strike?
Turnover and recruiting problems existed long before the negotiations began....and surely must be a consideration PHI must weigh in their decision on how they handle this affair.
PHI
Spoke to several PHI EMS Pilots and the are not likely to stay if there is a dual pay scale (EMS vs GOM). Some might go back to to the GOM.
So the company will win by depleting union membership, maybe trim the EMS side by not being able to fill the seats. In the EMS market there are other providers that can fill the void if PHI closed bases.
Back pay or legal fees the company ends paying something and I bet the company would rather pay the lawyers, strenghtens their positon over the union.
Look at the airliners, labor costs are the reason poor managers are filing bankrupcty and reaping big bonuses and the tax payers are picking up the bill on underfunded retirement plans!!
PHI is very much anti-union.
So the company will win by depleting union membership, maybe trim the EMS side by not being able to fill the seats. In the EMS market there are other providers that can fill the void if PHI closed bases.
Back pay or legal fees the company ends paying something and I bet the company would rather pay the lawyers, strenghtens their positon over the union.
Why would a gamble to break the union be worth the risk at this time.
PHI is very much anti-union.
I know of at least one large helicopter operator that took investment holidays on their pension funds back when investments were covering things....then cried poor mouth when the big pay rises hit and they "could not fund" the pension system if the pay rises went through. All legal by that country's law too mind you.
Perhaps Nutcracker 43 could expound upon that for us.
Havoc,
Perhaps the company is thinking the union solidarity is not as strong as it might actually turn out to be. When the PHI union formed it was with only about a 70% vote thus a fair number of pilots were not supporters of the union.
Buzzes I hear out of the GOM suggest that number now approaches 90-95%. If that is true...this will get interesting in a hurry.
Perhaps Nutcracker 43 could expound upon that for us.
Havoc,
Perhaps the company is thinking the union solidarity is not as strong as it might actually turn out to be. When the PHI union formed it was with only about a 70% vote thus a fair number of pilots were not supporters of the union.
Buzzes I hear out of the GOM suggest that number now approaches 90-95%. If that is true...this will get interesting in a hurry.
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Holly Beach, Louisiana
Posts: 916
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Am I reading this correctly?
Article published Aug 29, 2006
PHI files strike-talk complaint
Injunction delays continued talks, union says
Jason Brown
[email protected]
Kayla Gagnet
[email protected]
PHI filed a complaint in federal court Monday seeking an injunction that could halt a possible strike, alleging that the union, which represents its 550 pilots, has been negotiating in bad faith for the past year. (Twenty nine months the negotiations have been going on isn't it?)
Union leaders said Monday that the injunction has delayed their plans, which could have ended in a strike.
The complaint follows failed negotiations last week in Washington, D.C., where both parties attended five days of "super mediation" meetings with the National Mediation Board.
On Monday, both parties were freed from a federally imposed 30-day cooling off period and returned to Lafayette without an agreement over pilot contracts, which expired May 2004.
Union President Steve Ragin described the meetings as "very contentious" and that the union made "really impressive moves" toward accepting the company's proposal with the exception of retroactive pay for pilots.
Ragin said the union feels its pilots are owed roughly $5 million in back pay.
"I can tell you that PHI is going to be spending well over that in legal fees trying to fight the union," Ragin said.
"And I don't mean that as a threat, I'm just forecasting what I expect they'll be doing as a matter of course."
Lafayette-based PHI, one of the country's leading helicopter companies in both offshore oil and gas and air medical transportation, issued a statement Monday claiming the union continued to make "unreasonable economic demands" that "were not in the overall best interests of the company or its employees, including its pilots." (Just what might that be? The back pay from May '04?)
PHI said it has now implemented "substantial economic improvements for its pilots, consistent with its final contract proposals made at the bargaining table." (Legal but sounds like a old time "take it or leave it deal on pay.)
Those include "an economic package equal to or better than PHI's primary competitors in the oil and gas and air medical services segments of the helicopter service industry."
Ragin said union officials have yet to analyze the full economic package implemented by the company.
According to court documents, PHI seeks to force the union to bargain in good faith, with the intentions of reaching an agreement and avoiding a strike.
PHI accuses union negotiators of "going through the motions" in negotiating for better pilot pay and back pay, according to a lawsuit filed Monday.
The company claims the union has used delay tactics by refusing to meet for bargaining sessions or stalling the sessions and cutting short negotiating time. (After 29 months even a feuding husband and wife can settle a divorce!)
It claims that the union ended the parties' final bargaining session on June 30, "notwithstanding the fact that progress was made due to the Company's concessions and good faith attempts to reach an agreement." (Sounds like the management refused to budge on the retroactive pay issue knowing the Union would not budge on that either!)
Ragin denied all of those claims.
PHI files strike-talk complaint
Injunction delays continued talks, union says
Jason Brown
[email protected]
Kayla Gagnet
[email protected]
PHI filed a complaint in federal court Monday seeking an injunction that could halt a possible strike, alleging that the union, which represents its 550 pilots, has been negotiating in bad faith for the past year. (Twenty nine months the negotiations have been going on isn't it?)
Union leaders said Monday that the injunction has delayed their plans, which could have ended in a strike.
The complaint follows failed negotiations last week in Washington, D.C., where both parties attended five days of "super mediation" meetings with the National Mediation Board.
On Monday, both parties were freed from a federally imposed 30-day cooling off period and returned to Lafayette without an agreement over pilot contracts, which expired May 2004.
Union President Steve Ragin described the meetings as "very contentious" and that the union made "really impressive moves" toward accepting the company's proposal with the exception of retroactive pay for pilots.
Ragin said the union feels its pilots are owed roughly $5 million in back pay.
"I can tell you that PHI is going to be spending well over that in legal fees trying to fight the union," Ragin said.
"And I don't mean that as a threat, I'm just forecasting what I expect they'll be doing as a matter of course."
Lafayette-based PHI, one of the country's leading helicopter companies in both offshore oil and gas and air medical transportation, issued a statement Monday claiming the union continued to make "unreasonable economic demands" that "were not in the overall best interests of the company or its employees, including its pilots." (Just what might that be? The back pay from May '04?)
PHI said it has now implemented "substantial economic improvements for its pilots, consistent with its final contract proposals made at the bargaining table." (Legal but sounds like a old time "take it or leave it deal on pay.)
Those include "an economic package equal to or better than PHI's primary competitors in the oil and gas and air medical services segments of the helicopter service industry."
Ragin said union officials have yet to analyze the full economic package implemented by the company.
According to court documents, PHI seeks to force the union to bargain in good faith, with the intentions of reaching an agreement and avoiding a strike.
PHI accuses union negotiators of "going through the motions" in negotiating for better pilot pay and back pay, according to a lawsuit filed Monday.
The company claims the union has used delay tactics by refusing to meet for bargaining sessions or stalling the sessions and cutting short negotiating time. (After 29 months even a feuding husband and wife can settle a divorce!)
It claims that the union ended the parties' final bargaining session on June 30, "notwithstanding the fact that progress was made due to the Company's concessions and good faith attempts to reach an agreement." (Sounds like the management refused to budge on the retroactive pay issue knowing the Union would not budge on that either!)
Ragin denied all of those claims.
Sounds like the arseholes want their Kate and Edith too.
"Just a pilot"
SASless,
I don't have any information as to PHI management plans. I don't think there is a "good time" to cause labor issues. That said, this seems to me as a spectacularly bad time for PHI to back it's pilots to the wall. Accusing them of negotitating in "bad faith" strikes me as the absolute icing on a pie in the face.
I hear that management's been unable to staff through the summer? And, there's been heavy demand on pilots to fill unstaffed seats? Me, I'd be HACKED off beyond words at that situation.
Add: 29 months of negotiating;
Record profit years for your major customers;
Increasing technical demands in GoM aviation;
Your major competitor with freshly resolved labor issues putting them in the catbird's seat;
Last years' hurricane season ratcheting up tension regards evacs (Ernesto may not be a factor, but the season peaks in September with two more active months after that);
And the EMS side newly expanded in very competive markets, and I'd say this is a very bad time to kick sand in their pilot's faces. The pilot's compensation packages isn't so strong now that they can't afford to move on, and there are slots available, especially for well-trained and seasoned pilots as are typical at PHI. Job openings are out there, so PHI's pilots won't have to "hold out". I see the question more as how many will return?
An aside- When I went from the GoM to EMS, it was a pleasant surprise... Less money (then- comparable now), home every night, and something resembling a normal "family life". Living out of a bag for a week of 14-hour, 95-degree/100% humidity days isn't hard to leave.
I haven't worked for PHI in 9 years, and I don't know who's who in Lafayette now. But if the Local's demands weren't murderous- and I can't see the guys I knew in the GoM being that stupid- Lafeyette's response verges on suicidal. No, I don't see LFT "caving in"- the industry's chafing under poilot shortages, staffing issues, etc., and some in management see no answer to that besides making the situation worse by loading the people who'll work until they drive them away. No long vision, or imagination.
I hope they'll reach a negotiated agreement, otherwise PHI will continue to contract, becoming smaller and smaller. The company was, and probably still is, the top of the line in a lot of very low key-ways.
Why would LFT want to "break the union"? It's easy to blame somebody else for your problems- the organized pilots? It makes LFT's job more difficult, especially with expanding competition? I don't know.
Yes, this is a good time to be Air Log or ERA. There's no losing position, short-term, for the competition. My opinion is that LFT's been looking in the rear-view for way too long...
The pilots win, but maybe, someplace else. Management shrugs, shrinks the fleet, and jumps ship when their pay envelopes become to skinny.
I don't have any information as to PHI management plans. I don't think there is a "good time" to cause labor issues. That said, this seems to me as a spectacularly bad time for PHI to back it's pilots to the wall. Accusing them of negotitating in "bad faith" strikes me as the absolute icing on a pie in the face.
I hear that management's been unable to staff through the summer? And, there's been heavy demand on pilots to fill unstaffed seats? Me, I'd be HACKED off beyond words at that situation.
Add: 29 months of negotiating;
Record profit years for your major customers;
Increasing technical demands in GoM aviation;
Your major competitor with freshly resolved labor issues putting them in the catbird's seat;
Last years' hurricane season ratcheting up tension regards evacs (Ernesto may not be a factor, but the season peaks in September with two more active months after that);
And the EMS side newly expanded in very competive markets, and I'd say this is a very bad time to kick sand in their pilot's faces. The pilot's compensation packages isn't so strong now that they can't afford to move on, and there are slots available, especially for well-trained and seasoned pilots as are typical at PHI. Job openings are out there, so PHI's pilots won't have to "hold out". I see the question more as how many will return?
An aside- When I went from the GoM to EMS, it was a pleasant surprise... Less money (then- comparable now), home every night, and something resembling a normal "family life". Living out of a bag for a week of 14-hour, 95-degree/100% humidity days isn't hard to leave.
I haven't worked for PHI in 9 years, and I don't know who's who in Lafayette now. But if the Local's demands weren't murderous- and I can't see the guys I knew in the GoM being that stupid- Lafeyette's response verges on suicidal. No, I don't see LFT "caving in"- the industry's chafing under poilot shortages, staffing issues, etc., and some in management see no answer to that besides making the situation worse by loading the people who'll work until they drive them away. No long vision, or imagination.
I hope they'll reach a negotiated agreement, otherwise PHI will continue to contract, becoming smaller and smaller. The company was, and probably still is, the top of the line in a lot of very low key-ways.
Why would LFT want to "break the union"? It's easy to blame somebody else for your problems- the organized pilots? It makes LFT's job more difficult, especially with expanding competition? I don't know.
Yes, this is a good time to be Air Log or ERA. There's no losing position, short-term, for the competition. My opinion is that LFT's been looking in the rear-view for way too long...
The pilots win, but maybe, someplace else. Management shrugs, shrinks the fleet, and jumps ship when their pay envelopes become to skinny.
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: UK
Posts: 36
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: UK
Posts: 36
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Sounds like something is going to happen soon...
Source:
http://www.local108pilots.org/
Source:
http://www.local108pilots.org/
Dear Local 108 Pilots,
On September 7, 2006, OPEIU President Goodwin sent you a report on the status
of negotiations in which he referred to PHI’s Chairman of the Board and Chief
Executive Officer Al A. Gonsoulin’s letter to you dated August 28, 2006. Since
those letters were sent, the company has made no effort, either directly or through
the NMB, of a desire to continue negotiations with the union.
In his letter, Mr. Gonsoulin notes that all retroactive payments will not be paid
until there is a ratified renewed agreement. How would PHI and the union reach
such an agreement without negotiations? We do know, however, that an
agreement cannot be reached by the company unilaterally implementing its own
terms on a dictatorial basis.
It is our sincere hope that job actions do not become necessary in order to reach a
ratified renewed agreement, but it appears that the company is forcing the
possibility of such actions upon the pilots by not negotiating with the union.
Please note that you have a legal right to strike or engage in other types of work
stoppages. It is illegal for PHI to fire you or threaten you with discipline for
refusing to fly as part of your participation in a legal strike or work stoppage.
Communications are imperative!
Please make certain that you check the union’s web site, your e-mail and
phone messages on a regular basis for further information.
If you have not heard from the union by e-mail or phone within the last 36 hours,
you will need to forward your e-mail address and phone number to the union
immediately at [email protected].
September 18, 2006
PLEASE PRINT AND DISTRIBUTE TO ALL PILOTS
When called upon to participate in a strike or work stoppage, please read the
following statement to any representative of the company who calls or questions
you about your actions or your work status:
“On the advice of my Union, I must inform you that I am engaging in a
legally authorized work stoppage until further notice.”
Please carry the above statement with you at all times:
If PHI questions you further, simply repeat that statement. Remain calm!
On September 7, 2006, OPEIU President Goodwin sent you a report on the status
of negotiations in which he referred to PHI’s Chairman of the Board and Chief
Executive Officer Al A. Gonsoulin’s letter to you dated August 28, 2006. Since
those letters were sent, the company has made no effort, either directly or through
the NMB, of a desire to continue negotiations with the union.
In his letter, Mr. Gonsoulin notes that all retroactive payments will not be paid
until there is a ratified renewed agreement. How would PHI and the union reach
such an agreement without negotiations? We do know, however, that an
agreement cannot be reached by the company unilaterally implementing its own
terms on a dictatorial basis.
It is our sincere hope that job actions do not become necessary in order to reach a
ratified renewed agreement, but it appears that the company is forcing the
possibility of such actions upon the pilots by not negotiating with the union.
Please note that you have a legal right to strike or engage in other types of work
stoppages. It is illegal for PHI to fire you or threaten you with discipline for
refusing to fly as part of your participation in a legal strike or work stoppage.
Communications are imperative!
Please make certain that you check the union’s web site, your e-mail and
phone messages on a regular basis for further information.
If you have not heard from the union by e-mail or phone within the last 36 hours,
you will need to forward your e-mail address and phone number to the union
immediately at [email protected].
September 18, 2006
PLEASE PRINT AND DISTRIBUTE TO ALL PILOTS
When called upon to participate in a strike or work stoppage, please read the
following statement to any representative of the company who calls or questions
you about your actions or your work status:
“On the advice of my Union, I must inform you that I am engaging in a
legally authorized work stoppage until further notice.”
Please carry the above statement with you at all times:
If PHI questions you further, simply repeat that statement. Remain calm!
Chopter,
Has the PHI request for an injunction against the Union been resolved? When Air Log tried that routine it seemed to backfire on them and the Judge did not take their side as they had hoped.
As I recall Drew Milke (now ex-CEO) was ordered to appear by the Judge which was most unusual in a labor dispute.
Is PHI in the same boat...looking for pie in the sky...and fixing to get their butts burned?
Has the PHI request for an injunction against the Union been resolved? When Air Log tried that routine it seemed to backfire on them and the Judge did not take their side as they had hoped.
As I recall Drew Milke (now ex-CEO) was ordered to appear by the Judge which was most unusual in a labor dispute.
Is PHI in the same boat...looking for pie in the sky...and fixing to get their butts burned?
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: UK
Posts: 36
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
It has begun...
Dear OPEIU Local 108 Pilots,
Because PHI has not bargained in good faith with OPEIU and Local 108, we have been unable to reach a fair agreement we, as professional pilots deserve for our families and ourselves.
Because PHI will not bargain in good faith, we have no other option than to exercise our legal right to conduct a work stoppage until PHI begins bargaining in good faith and we reach a fair agreement. PHI has forced disrespectful and inadequate conditions of employment upon us and we must take action.
Therefore, effective 4:00 A.M. Central Time, today, Wednesday, September 20, 2006, all OPEIU Local 108 Pilots in the employ of PHI are hereby instructed to not report for duty at the beginning of your work shift. Please contact the picket coordinator at your Base location for further instructions and picket line assignments.
For those pilots not on hitch, please stay at home until further notice.
For those pilots on hitch, please secure your aircraft, take all personal items with you when you leave your Base; and contact your picket coordinator.
Do not return to duty until you receive official word from an OPEIU Local 108 Representative. Please continue to monitor our Local 108 Web site and Hotline for updates.
If PHI management questions you in any way, please read and repeat if necessary, the following statement:
“On the advice of myUnion, I must inform you that I am on a legally authorized work stoppage until further notice.”
Remember, our strength is in our solidarity. Together, we will win the fight for respect and working conditions we all deserve as professional pilots.
In unity,
Steve Ragin and the OPEIU Local 108 Executive Board.
Because PHI has not bargained in good faith with OPEIU and Local 108, we have been unable to reach a fair agreement we, as professional pilots deserve for our families and ourselves.
Because PHI will not bargain in good faith, we have no other option than to exercise our legal right to conduct a work stoppage until PHI begins bargaining in good faith and we reach a fair agreement. PHI has forced disrespectful and inadequate conditions of employment upon us and we must take action.
Therefore, effective 4:00 A.M. Central Time, today, Wednesday, September 20, 2006, all OPEIU Local 108 Pilots in the employ of PHI are hereby instructed to not report for duty at the beginning of your work shift. Please contact the picket coordinator at your Base location for further instructions and picket line assignments.
For those pilots not on hitch, please stay at home until further notice.
For those pilots on hitch, please secure your aircraft, take all personal items with you when you leave your Base; and contact your picket coordinator.
Do not return to duty until you receive official word from an OPEIU Local 108 Representative. Please continue to monitor our Local 108 Web site and Hotline for updates.
If PHI management questions you in any way, please read and repeat if necessary, the following statement:
“On the advice of myUnion, I must inform you that I am on a legally authorized work stoppage until further notice.”
Remember, our strength is in our solidarity. Together, we will win the fight for respect and working conditions we all deserve as professional pilots.
In unity,
Steve Ragin and the OPEIU Local 108 Executive Board.
Bobby Suggs is rolling over in his grave about now!
"I can find all the pilots I want in the gutters of New Orleans!"
Well....we will see if that is true now.
Want to start a pool....I say 72 hours of strike and PHI pays the full Retro pay! (That includes settling...writing it up....and getting the offer to the members of the union)
Well....we will see if that is true now.
Want to start a pool....I say 72 hours of strike and PHI pays the full Retro pay! (That includes settling...writing it up....and getting the offer to the members of the union)
Join Date: May 2005
Location: Missouri, USA
Age: 59
Posts: 235
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I got wind of that last night from someone whom I have a great amount of respect for. Stressful times, to be sure. Best of luck to her and her fellow pilots walking the line.
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: UK
Posts: 36
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
In the News:
PHI pilots union set to strike today
Group has filed complaint about bad-faith bargaining
Jason Brown
[email protected]
PHI's unionized pilots are expected to begin their strike today despite the company's attempt to get a federal court injunction to prevent them, a union official said Tuesday.
On Aug. 28, PHI filed a complaint for declaratory judgment and permanent injunctive relief against the union arguing among other things that the union practiced bad-faith bargaining during its negotiations over pilot contracts.
Union President Steve Ragin said the federal judge has yet to order the injunction and that the union, which represents approximately 550 PHI pilots, is free to take self-help measures following its release from federal mediation in August.
Ragin said the public should expect some picketers at select PHI bases, as well as near the PHI headquarters on Evangeline Thruway.
"The most significant thing will be all of the helicopters that won't be flying," he said.
PHI is a helicopter transportation company that flies oil and gas workers into the Gulf for companies such as Shell, Exxon and BP. It is unclear as to exactly what kind of an impact this could have on the oil and gas sector.
Also unclear is how many union members actually will participate in the strike. Ragin said an undisclosed number of both PHI's oil and gas and EMS pilot union members resigned following the implementation of an economic benefit package offered by the company after the union's release from federal mediation.
"We have a good strong core of support. We expect to be successful, otherwise we wouldn't try this," Ragin said. "Of course, it's always an iffy sort of thing, and PHI has tried to diminish our support but we believe the majority of the pilots on both sides. Both Air Medical and oil and gas both support the union and what we're doing
Group has filed complaint about bad-faith bargaining
Jason Brown
[email protected]
PHI's unionized pilots are expected to begin their strike today despite the company's attempt to get a federal court injunction to prevent them, a union official said Tuesday.
On Aug. 28, PHI filed a complaint for declaratory judgment and permanent injunctive relief against the union arguing among other things that the union practiced bad-faith bargaining during its negotiations over pilot contracts.
Union President Steve Ragin said the federal judge has yet to order the injunction and that the union, which represents approximately 550 PHI pilots, is free to take self-help measures following its release from federal mediation in August.
Ragin said the public should expect some picketers at select PHI bases, as well as near the PHI headquarters on Evangeline Thruway.
"The most significant thing will be all of the helicopters that won't be flying," he said.
PHI is a helicopter transportation company that flies oil and gas workers into the Gulf for companies such as Shell, Exxon and BP. It is unclear as to exactly what kind of an impact this could have on the oil and gas sector.
Also unclear is how many union members actually will participate in the strike. Ragin said an undisclosed number of both PHI's oil and gas and EMS pilot union members resigned following the implementation of an economic benefit package offered by the company after the union's release from federal mediation.
"We have a good strong core of support. We expect to be successful, otherwise we wouldn't try this," Ragin said. "Of course, it's always an iffy sort of thing, and PHI has tried to diminish our support but we believe the majority of the pilots on both sides. Both Air Medical and oil and gas both support the union and what we're doing
The Company side of things...per 2 Aug 06
http://phihelico.com/admin/PHI%20Uni...2006%20_2_.pdf
Seems the thought is OPIEU (meaning the Air Log Local) agreed to lesser pay and benefits than being asked for by OPIEU (meaning the PHI Local) and thus PHI (the company) is being unfairly treated by OPIEU (meaning the PHI Local).
The company suggests it will be harmed beyond repair if the Union Demand is met.
A review of the PHI SEC filings and stock history shows the company to be doing quite well.
A comparison of PHI (stock symbol PHI), Bristow/Air Log ( stock symbol BRS), and Canadian Helicopter ( stock symbol CHC) stock histories for an interesting view of how the big three are doing.
Yahoo provides a quick and easy way to do that in their financial section.
Seems the thought is OPIEU (meaning the Air Log Local) agreed to lesser pay and benefits than being asked for by OPIEU (meaning the PHI Local) and thus PHI (the company) is being unfairly treated by OPIEU (meaning the PHI Local).
The company suggests it will be harmed beyond repair if the Union Demand is met.
A review of the PHI SEC filings and stock history shows the company to be doing quite well.
A comparison of PHI (stock symbol PHI), Bristow/Air Log ( stock symbol BRS), and Canadian Helicopter ( stock symbol CHC) stock histories for an interesting view of how the big three are doing.
Yahoo provides a quick and easy way to do that in their financial section.
History is being written in the Gulf of Mexico today. I believe this event is as important for the helicopter pilots in the USA as was Air Logistics first voting for collective representation and starting a trend.
Today we need to see whether the pilots that followed in the footsteps of their senior fellows have the capability to understand that their current pay is not just thanks to pilots demand.
Interested spectator.
Today we need to see whether the pilots that followed in the footsteps of their senior fellows have the capability to understand that their current pay is not just thanks to pilots demand.
Interested spectator.