It Begins!
 

Negotiations for the Cougar Pilots' first union contract will begin in a couple of weeks. Watchin' n Waitin' to see how it goes. Hoping the union team is skilled and steadfast. "Long may 'dere big jib draw!" eh bye's!

Be very careful Angry Bayman.

Those nasty big oil companies who pay your wages don't like the big bad Unions. Some have even supported helicopter companies against the OPEIU.

Those helicopter companies don't have many Union dealings any more and some of the pilots from the Union days no longer have jobs. Perhaps you should ask them what they thought of the OPEIU.

An employee who dislikes the pay and working conditions should quit and go elsewhere.

An employer who offers poor pay and poor working conditions will have no employees.

That is the free market .... and it works the best.

Only limp noodles need a union .

Compare life in the Gulf of Mexico or the North Sea "Before" Unions....and "After".....look at the pay and working conditions and financial condition of the companies.

The Oil Companies may not like Unions...the Operators may not like Unions....even some Pilots may not like Unions.....but the Pay, Benefits, and Working Conditions are better and both the Helicopter Industry and Oil Industry are doing quite well after the Union came into being.

The only reason for a Union is piss poor Management. If the Operator has good management, does right by their employees....no Union can get a Toe Hold and be able to get a winning vote.

After the Union is formed....then it is Union Management that has to succeed with the members or it will find itself being de-certified and out of business.

Unionism is a business in and of itself....just like any other business. If you do not have a product to sell that people will buy and continue to buy...if you cannot price your product at a reasonable price....you go out of business.

One Man's Opinion here.....I see Unions as being good and bad....it all depends upon how they conduct their business and treat their members.

Pick your leaders carefully....get the right folks and your union will succeed and your pay, benefits, and working conditions will benefit from that. If not....look at the Gulf of Mexico for a bit of history.

"An employer who offers poor pay and poor working conditions will have no employees."

Nonsense. An employer who offers poor pay and poor working conditions will have plenty of employees as long as their competitors are no better.

Well said Aero!

Grass is not always greener. Ask some in Cougar who have left and are now back.

Nuff said.

And yes, da by's are watching.

Never liked unions, never been a member. Haven't liked a lot of employers. When I'm getting nowhere I walk - always within my Ts and Cs. Comes down to a point of view. Which is better from a pilot point of view - 100 members flying S92s and making $100,000 pa or 200 members flying S76s and making $50,000 pa or 400 members flying B407s and making $25,000 pa (just for example figures). Many of us want to be pilots, but life is full of economies of scale.

From what I've seen, once so-called professional unions get involved they're in it mostly for the benefit of the union officials. With too many pilots chasing too few jobs and willing to take whatever is on offer, even if it means working for less than a truck driver makes and greedy union officials, the only ones to benefit are unscrupulous employers and greedy full-time union officials. Helicopter pilots nearly always end up getting screwed. Unions will make a few relatively wealthy and many unemployed. You make your choice and you reap what you've sown - to mix a bunch of metaphors!

da Union Wins
 

Well its been quite a 'time' here on da rock wit the Union heavies working to get a first Contract. Today they said they got one with a majority vote of 80.4%. I guess allll eyes are lookin' to see what 'appens now! :ooh:

There were a few dissenters of course. :mad:

I guess we are all brudders now eh by'! :D

Unions
 

Congratulations to all that support the union. Unions are for their members and only as good as the support they get from the members.

Only working together can we ever make our profession better, safer and more rewarding.