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BA Pilots to ballot for strike over OpenSkies

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BA Pilots to ballot for strike over OpenSkies

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Old 19th Feb 2008, 19:57
  #701 (permalink)  

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Would you agree this would be a fair tactic,an all out strike?.
Would have thought it was one of the very likely options
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Old 19th Feb 2008, 21:05
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We won't get the choice.

It's going to be a 'lock out'!

Suits me.
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Old 20th Feb 2008, 06:48
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BA pilots will not tolerate being forced to compete for their own jobs.
BA pilots are not afraid to stand up to a bullying, greedy management.


Wow ! Written as though we really are in one of those time warps that has launched us back to the 70s !

C'mon guys and gals you need to wake up to the new competitive World, most other facets of this business have put behind them, the Nationalised Industry ethic some decades ago..

Look - I'm not looking to incite here. Why is it the rest of the business sees the need for this to be a seperate lower cost model, and do not see this as a threat to our existance. What makes this, a unique issue for pilots ? No no really, I'd like to know with no animosity or anything. I believe we need to come out from the whole "BA Fat cat, latte swilling mangers versus the rest" crap and without the "BA Pilots will not" blah... and get back to realising we all work for the same reason, not because we are all flag waving, banner carrying nutters, but because we all want to take home our dosh and do the things we REALLY want to be doing, so lets cut the "them and us" rhetorical B.S and understand the real issue. I'll promise to do my bit - I'm not hiding behind any agenda, I genuinely want to understand w/o the bells and whistles - Like others do, no doubt.
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Old 20th Feb 2008, 07:03
  #704 (permalink)  
 
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Unfortunately, if you give an inch they'll take a mile - any weakness is fatal, ....too many BA managers with agenda's these days.
Bring back the 70's.
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Old 20th Feb 2008, 07:32
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I may not be in the circles or corridoors for this behaviour. Yes, I will agree that there is always a desire to look at cost reduction in all aspects of the business and yes, there is always likely to be challenge on our industrial agreements. I'm positive that if I were working under the same agreements my union had back in the 70s, I would be personally wealthier. However, I accept that the business has had to refine itself over the time and as someone joining at a later point in time, my hourly take-home is likely to be relatively lower once you allow for RPI etc... We are in a fiercely competitve industry... I knew I should have studied or I.T !!

Rgds
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Old 20th Feb 2008, 09:37
  #706 (permalink)  
 
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I wonder if the shoe were on the other foot?

Hand over the cash gentleman
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Old 20th Feb 2008, 09:41
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Haughtney1.....it is how I see it having looked at BALPA website....and the shoe is not on the other foot and is unlikely to be...
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Old 20th Feb 2008, 10:00
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Iva, I was merely posing the question mate, I'm not an employee of birdseed..nor am I ever likely to be, I am however a member of Balpa....

Its called playing the devils advocate...
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Old 20th Feb 2008, 10:23
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BA FAIR MANAGER - you have hit the nail on the head. It is precisely those ancient 70's agreements that need to be re-addressed. Namely the schedule K which now that the freedom of openskies has altered the flying environment in which we operate, needs to be re-written to reflect that.
I totally agree that all who operate under the BA banner wish for its success and continued job security. However only a naive fool would allow such an opportunity for management to tear apart our terms and conditions as we know them to go ahead. For all we know - this management might be sincere with its assurances but that would not stop future managaments exploiting the opportunity. On a business level does WW just operate by giving assurances or promises? I very much suspect he does not - rather there are contracts of legal stature. Why then should we be the muppets to say - 'oh well go on then.. if you promise not to harm us..'
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Old 20th Feb 2008, 10:49
  #710 (permalink)  
 
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Bigbrutha, I would not say my post was that inaccurate i think that is a little ott...however thats your opinion and you are welcome to it. I would agree, BALPA would crumble if they lost . BA membership would turn their backs on them. I pay the same percentage as any other pilot but in cash terms it likely to be higher as BA basic is less than mine at this time. You might say that BA get a discount in cash terms, but hey lets not go down that avenue. The crux of my point is that we should not be asked to sub for BALPA, in effect BALPA NEC are saying we will support BA pilots but only 50 % lets hope that is not true for BA pilots sake. As you put it...." think about it ". Our company and many others have had disputes but BALPA has never done for us as they are doing for BA Balpa at this time. Dan Air for example.
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Old 20th Feb 2008, 10:58
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If the money to be made from Openskies would be wiped out by the possibility that it's pilots might want a pay-rise at some point in the future, then it is hardly a viable business plan is it? BA is simply being greedy, and hoping to get away with it. Luckily, BALPA and the BA pilots are not going to let that happen.

The strike ballot closes in 5 minutes. Then watch the share price fall. The shareholders are not going to be happy with you BA managers, unless of course you have a very good argument to put before them.
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Old 20th Feb 2008, 11:22
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I have 3 BA long haul seats booked for my family over Easter. Booked over 6 months ago. Whilst it now seems possible we will suffer a change of carrier AT BEST I wish to record my support for the (assumed) strike action. Such steps to check excessive corporate greed is long overdue.

Off now to buy 3 airbeds!
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Old 20th Feb 2008, 11:23
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Well just get PLOS to get A330's instead and it could always be crewed by the 50+ GB pilots that applied to BA after being tangoed. Funnily enough... they all got turned down, without exception!

But then... they never were good enough for you guys! How dare non-BA seniority list pilots fly a BA coloured plane - they'd be crashing all over the place!
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Old 20th Feb 2008, 12:23
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I know of at least one person who got through Rumours Everywhere.
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Old 20th Feb 2008, 12:49
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... who applied BEFORE operation tango..!
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Old 20th Feb 2008, 17:03
  #716 (permalink)  

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Wow ! Written as though we really are in one of those time warps that has launched us back to the 70s !

C'mon guys and gals you need to wake up to the new competitive World, most other facets of this business have put behind them, the Nationalised Industry ethic some decades ago..
BA MANAGER, you say that, then you say you are not out to incite!

I strongly resent your implications. BA pilots are amongst the most task-oriented and 'onside' groups in the company. We regularly exceed our agreed limits, receiving only a 'thank-you' letter as reward. Instead we are forced to wait for transport for up to an hour at the end of a long duty day/night. (Imagine the ruckus if Watersiders were kept waiting for an unspecified period for a bus home at the end of a hard day's latte drinking!)
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Old 20th Feb 2008, 17:14
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We regularly exceed our agreed limits, receiving only a 'thank-you' letter as reward


Wow, a thank you letter. I work unpaid overtime for BA regularly and usually my manager doesn't even know about it. Who sends out the letters?

(Last Tue 0500-1400 then call in at 2200 for A319 hyd leak and worked until 0530). Then enjoyed half my day off in bed, back at 0500 Thur.

Can't do enough for a good co!!!!
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Old 20th Feb 2008, 18:33
  #718 (permalink)  
 
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Glad you work for a good "co" Swedish S, must be one of the few..

"overstress" has mentioned the on-going saga/running sore of buses...to me this one issue highlights BA managers complete inability and unwillingness to accept they are managing people, not machines. Most of us ( and I include our Cabin crew Colleagues here) have probablty spent the equivalent of days, if not weeks, over the last few years, stood in cold damp stairwells undr T4 waiting for a bus back from our inbound flight at LHR to the Car Park. I know of one crew last week who ended up doing a 14+ hour night on an Eastern Seaboard LHR flight and then had to wait a further hour + for a bus from the aircraft side....IMHO this shows a complete lack of respect for the workforce, is not acceptable in civilised society in this day and age, and goes some small way to explaining the hardening of the anti-management stance on the shop floor....

Until BA managers actually confront the reality that they are managing people, and learn to listen to, act on their concerns and needs, the strife at BA will continue, well beyond the present spat with BALPA. Sadly I doubt many, if any, of the present managers at BA, up to and including Board Level, are capable of learning any such lesson.

Rant off, waiting for the result in the AM
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Old 20th Feb 2008, 18:45
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90 odd % in favour is my prediction with a high voting return. We shall see.....

Regards

Orion Man
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Old 20th Feb 2008, 19:03
  #720 (permalink)  
 
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Has anyone in Balpa asked the other (5000+) non BA members if its ok to use up Balpa reserve funds on this strike ?
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