CAL Pilots Still Left in the Dark Over Merger and JCBA

Now that merger talks between United and Continental Airlines are complete, both pilot groups are still in the dark regarding the terms of this merger. CALALPA started a forum several months ago. It was obviously an attempt to communicate (feed) the pilots the union line (misinformation). When MIGS spoke out against the union, they were silenced. The forum eventually died.  With the forum gone, we are left with Calforums, UALFlyforums, UALpilotforum and of course the Savecalpilots website for information. How sad the union just won't communicate honest information to it's members, instead having to rely on outside sources for information. What is the union hiding, and why are they hiding it? Look no further than contract 02. Look no further than the sacrifices the UAL pilots made. Further complicating the problem is a lack of clarity from the Airline Pilots Association (ALPA) regarding merger policy between two ALPA carriers as large as United and CAL. Many CAL pilots have been made aware of the United pilots wishes and vice versa, but guidance from the union has been vague and the facts have been few and far between.  What are the Continental pilots wishes? What are the UAL pilots wishes? ALPA must tread a careful line.  Will our union use this "new found" leverage to correct the wrongs of the past, and restore the pay, benefits, and pride to this honorable profession?

We would like to welcome back our furloughed CAL (hostage) pilots. Keep in mind, Jay Pierce will try to take credit for your return. Don't be fooled! We are sure he made some negotiated deal to help himself. The merger had more to do with your return than any one person.

Communication is the key to the success to the current negotiations. Here is a list of your reps. Feel free to contact them with your questions. If you have problems getting a response, email your questions to us. We will do the best we can to get them answered.

                                         Contact your reps and make your wishes known:

                                                            jay.pierce@alpa.org                                             doug.marotta@alpa.org
                                            jayson.baron@alpa.org                                        tara.cook@alpa.org
                                            eric.hunter@alpa.org                                             ben.salley@alpa.org
                                           scott.cornelison@alpa.org                                      john.persons@alpa.org
                                             bruce.bishop@alpa.org                                       dave.gourley@alpa.org
                                             tom.howard@alpa.org                                         robert.klumb@alpa.org  

                                            Industry news and informational websites:
United Airlines and Continental Airlines have agreed to a merger of equals, creating the world’s leading airline featuring superior service to customers, expanded access to an unparalleled global airline network, improved long-term career prospects for employees, and a platform for improved profitability and sustainable long-term value for shareholders.

                Please read entire story at the following link:  United/Continental Merger

Don't forget to visit Commentary and Editorial on the right hand side of this page. Send us your submissions for our pilots to read.

   COMMENTARY/ EDITORIALS 

Send us your letters. We will post them here for our pilots to read. If you do not want your identity divulged, just let us know. We will gladly leave your name off.
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What is going with Jay Pierce?

First we hear about Jay's adventure in Paris where he sat in Business First (with his wife) while forcing the working crew to take their rest breaks on the proverbial "park bench" in coach. Didn't contract 02 or some stupid side letter cover this issue? We guess Jay Pierce isn't good enough to abide by the contract that he had a hand in writing. Now Jay Pierce seems to be having a problem getting his medical on time. According to official FAA sources, Jay Pierce's last medical was taken in January 2011. It expired as a first class medical at the end of July 2011. There has been no other medicals reported on the FAA website since then. Pierce claims he has flown trips and received training including a PC and an LOE. Was this all done without being current medically? The rest of us line pilots have to stay current, but not Jay Pierce. He's too busy to get his medicals when they are required. When confronted, Pierce claims he had a medical in September 2011, and one in March 2012. Really Jay? Why didn't the FAA website show these medicals? Everyone else had their medicals posted on the FAA website, but not you. You went non current starting in August 2011. You got a new medical in September 2011. That means you couldn't do any flying in August. Nice trick...and you still got paid.  Next we find (if this is even true) your September 2011 medical expired at the end of March 2012. You took a PC and LOE training in March 2012. Did you have a medical then? Who really knows? The FAA knows!! Once again, the poor line pilots must have a current medical ( required by the company) to take a simulator. But not you Jay. You seem to defy all the rules we line pilots must follow. Perhaps the company is looking the other way when it comes to you Jay. We wonder why..... Now, all of a sudden, out of the blue, you have a current medical. The FAA website says you took a medical exam in May. This means you once again went non current during the month of April 2012. We sure hope the union trip loss records don't show "fly back" during April 2012. Why did you have to get another medical in May when you were supposedly current in March 2012. Boy is this confusing. Once again you got paid your full wages. Where do we put in an application for your job? It sounds like you do whatever you damn well please, and get paid to do it. That's what we would like to do. To make busy and cloud the Paris flight scandal issue and lack of a medical, you have to act like you are in charge by acting tough with the company, so you put out a scathing letter against the company. Did the company write this for you?  What a tough guy!!

Did you really let your medical lapse? Are you that irresponsible that you just didn't have time? Can you explain how you could take two medical exams, receive 2 certificates and not have the FAA website even reflect just one of them after July 2011? Are you a victim of a FAA technological  snafu? Our conclusion is that you are either lying about your medicals or about the fly back and training. Time to come clean Mr. Union Chairman. Next you'll tell us you have 20000 hours of flight time....Really! Please resign Chairman Pierce. You are an embarrassment to this pilot group....and by the way. Take Baron, Cook, and Boyens with you.


Jay Pierce aka "The Unionist" demands the First class rest seat from CDG to IAH

When the flight from CDG to IAH was about to depart gate agents notified the Captain their rest seat was in BF. CALALPA MEC Chairman Pierce was traveling  PS5 thereby claiming the a seat in BF. Whether Pierce was asked to come to the cockpit by the Captain for questioning is still unknown. During the conversation, the Captain asked that Pierce sit in coach. He refused saying it was his right and privilege to sit there by the company. Some unionist. When you kneel to the company the way Pierce does, you get certain perks. Pierce's wife was also along for the ride. Of course he wanted her up there in BF with him. In the end, Pierce and his wife sat in BF while the "working crew" dosed in coach. Jay Pierce really had an opportunity to show his selflessness and respect for the working crew. Instead he only thought of himself. Thank you Jay for being a real "unionist".

We await his Friday comm to address this issue as well as his lack of a medical certificate.

May 3rd, 2012:

This is the two year anniversary of the merger announcement between Continental and United Airlines. Management excitement is still ongoing. Or is it? Changes have been taking place, such as the integration of the reservation systems. This single act probably lost United more customers than any other changes combined. Just recently, an article came out saying United is the "worst airline ever"! How Jeff Smisek keeps his job is beyond any rational thinking. Our union and management are still negotiating a JCBA. In other words, the pilots have been without a contract for so long we can't remember when the last one expired. What is our union doing about it? Jay Pierce is still feathering his own bed using Jayson Baron and Tara cook to hold on the his chairmanship. Pierce secretly hopes he can get a management position even though he signed an agreement not to do so. Jay Heppner was elected Chairman at UAL. It can be said that Heppner has done more in office than Pierce has done in all the years he's been in office. We will wait and see if the line in the sand will be crossed at the end of May. Why don't we have a contract? Simple answer, the company isn't in a big hurry. Neither is Pierce. Nothing but double talk and empty promises. The combined company has the advantage of previous contracts negotiated with the help of ALPA national through both MEC's. The worst contracts ever negotiated for any labor force doing the same work. ALPA President Moak is concerned the UAL pilots will decertify ALPA. He should be concerned. Patience is growing very short with ALPA. What leverage does the combined pilot group have at their disposal? Whatever leverage we had and will have has been ignored by Pierce and his followers. Remember that word synergy? Synergy is not leverage, otherwise Smisek would be at the table. Smisek says he is waiting for the pilots to be fair to the company. Oh please Jeff!! Your salary has increased ten fold plus while the pilots work under an old contract. Who is being fair here? Smisek sold a bill of goods to the stock holders of grandiose synergies and a world class airline. The company also gained a single certificate. What has changed? From worst to first, back to worst!

This website is also celebrating its two year anniversary. Two years ago we embarked on a website that would be informational in content. Our sole purpose is to inform both pilot groups of news and information not readily available through the union and the company. We would like to thank the thousands upon thousands of pilots from many airlines for visiting our site and the contributions of information posted. Rest assured, we will be here giving an independent view and voice on current events and union matters. We look forward to another year of pressuring all parties to a successful end product.

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Recall of CAL 170 reps in our future?

Seems there is a strong movement to recall CAL 170 reps Jayson Baron, and Tara Cook. According to documents provided by CAL 170, this could mean Tim Boyens could go out the door also. One can only hope. This has been tried twice, with Baron and Cook able to hold on to their jobs. This time may be different. Seems Jayson Baron will not allow MIGS to put forth a resolution for another recall attempt. Jayson Baron even had the gall to close the agenda items 41 days ahead of the scheduled meeting so as to quell another recall attempt. What is Baron and Cook afraid of? If they are doing a good job then they will stay in office. In our opinion, if anything hits you in the face like Baron admitting he heard of the recall attempt, and closed the agenda early...that should answer your question whether he ( or they) are doing a good job. Let's hope we can rid ourselves of the vermin infestation and do a complete cleaning of Pierce's office. Please read the following resolution.... Resolution

Please read the following email sent to a member in good standing. Baron is playing politics and desperately trying to hold on to his office. One has to ask why Baron has anticipated a recall for sometime. Jayson Baron...Please resign! You are not a "fit" rep. You are not a unionist. Neither is Pierce. Please take Tara Cook and Tim Boyens with you!

From: "Baron, Jayson, CAL EWR CA Rep/CAL170 Chairman"
Date: May 1, 2012
To: Sean Carroll , "Couette, Bill, ALPA VP Administration"
Cc: "Cook, Tara, CAL170 Vice Chairman" , "Boyens, Tim CAL170 Secretary-Treasurer"
Subject: Re: Resolutions to be added to May 21st LEC meeting
Sean,

Due to the hectic times we live in, I have anticipated a recall request for sometime. Additionally, since I have already been through one of these in the past, I am quite familiar with the process. However, just to be sure a few weeks ago I asked Captain Bill Couette, ALPA's Vice President of Administration this very question. One of Captain Couette's many responsibilities as Vice President of Administration for ALPA is overseeing the local council recall process. For your convenience, I have cc'd Captain Couette on both my original response and this one.

Fraternally,

Jayson

Captain Jayson Baron
Airline Pilots Association, International
Continental Newark Captain Representative
Local Executive Council 170 Chairman
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"We understand that some members of the CAL MEC have come to the conclusion that Captain Pierce is actually an agent for management, and several UAL councils have passed “no confidence” resolutions."

Please read the following letter... "immediately remove Captain Pierce".

United Continental Sued by U.S. for Underpaying Guardsman

United Continental Holdings Inc. (UAL) was sued by the U.S. Justice Department over claims the company denied a pilot employment benefits during his military service.
The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Denver, was brought on behalf of TenEyck LaTourrette, a major serving in the Colorado Air National Guard, according to an e-mailed statement from the Justice Department.

United, based in Chicago, under compensated LaTourrette’s pension by basing contributions on a minimum monthly schedule rather than using his actual schedule for the 12 months preceding his military obligations, according to the statement. The underfunding is a violation of the 1994 Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act, according to the Justice Department.
“We ask the men and women of our armed forces to fight for our country’s freedom and to be willing to risk their lives for that cause,” John Walsh, U.S. Attorney in Denver, said in the statement. “When they return home they should not have to fight to be properly compensated. I would like to recognize the outstanding efforts of the Civil Rights Division for their work to protect the benefits of this service member.”
United Airlines parent UAL Corp. (UALAQ) merged with Continental Airlines Inc. in October 2010 in an all-stock deal, surpassing Delta as the world’s biggest carrier.
Mike Trevino, a spokesman for United Continental Holdings Inc., declined to comment on the lawsuit.
The case is LaTourrette v. United Airlines Inc. 12- CV-00635, U.S. District Court, District of Colorado (Denver).

Smisek quote....

“If co-workers trust each other and trust management, if we invest in them and give them the tools they need, they will deliver better service to customers, customers will continue to fly us, and we can deliver to you, the investors.”

Practice what you preach Jeff!


The following is from a recent article:

"On multiple flights this year, I’ve personally heard Continental flyers groan and boo out loud every time they see the welcome aboard video where Jeff Smisek touts how he’s out to help customers, tells them why they are going to like this merger, and brags about how many planes he’s painted in the new livery.  Flight attendants and pilots roll their eyes as well."

What this person forgot to mention is the greeting from Smisek refering to "treating each other with dignity and respect, als treating others the way you'd like to be treated". What planet is Smisek from? Of all the people in the universe who says one thing in public, and does the opposite in private really takes the cake. Smisek doesn't have a clue how to run an airline. He's a lawyer...enough said. At the rate he is going, this merger will never be a success. Perhaps on the surface it will, but internally he will never gain the respect of his "fellow employees". He needs these employees to succeed. Maybe he got what he wanted and is only there just to piss people off. Recently Smisek was traveling out of Houston. There was a meltdown (how appropriate) at the gate. When passengers got wind that Smisek was there, they peppered him with complaints. We hear he just stood there with a blank look on his face. Perhaps Smisek feels there's enough people on this planet who will blindly fly on United. What he doesn't realize is eventually he will run out. That's when he jumps out with his golden parachute in hand and leaves us with a bigger mess before Gordon Bethune stepped in.

UAL-Continental’s Huge, Foreseeable Disaster

United-Continental has committed the classic financial mistake of lending short term and borrowing long term

Should we be concerned? Jeff has made his millions. Is this the perverbial terd left in the punch bowl? Time will tell.

Read the article here... Disaster

TIME TO DECERTIFY ALPA!!! LET'S GET OUT BEFORE THEY TAKE US TO THE CLEANERS!!

IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM THE DPA

In the 10 year case between TWA pilots and ALPA, there has been a major development that will negatively affect all ALPA members. ALPA and the TWA pilots HAVE AGREED TO MEDIATION over the amount of damages ALPA will pay the TWA pilot group for harming them in their merger with American Airlines. The TWA pilots are seeking $1.2 BILLION in damages! DPA had hoped the damage trial would progress on a normal timeline (6 to 9 months from the January 10th, 2012 scheduled hearing), because it would allow Delta Pilots to sever our relationship with ALPA prior to the attachment of a devastating financial burden on all ALPA members. WE NO LONGER HAVE THE LUXURY OF TIME ON OUR SIDE! With mediation agreed to, this process could move much faster and ALPA's financial burden will be locked in much sooner than expected. It is imperative that Delta Pilots complete the transition to DPA before ALPA has a chance to penalize Delta, CAL and United Pilots for continuing ALPA failures. When ALPA representatives are approached with questions about the TWA lawsuit and associated damages, two answers are commonly given: "ALPA will appeal this verdict for years to come" and "ALPA has insurance for that". This decision to go to mediation ENSURES ALPA will be paying our dues dollars in a very large quantity to the 2,300 pilots they failed to represent. The weak excuse of "delay through appeal" is no longer valid. The only other question that remains revolves around the other common answer, "ALPA has insurance for that." In an effort to understand exactly how much capability ALPA has to pay damages and settlements, DPA has exposed ALPA's wholly owned subsidiary, Kitty Hawk Insurance Company. We discovered very disturbing information about the history of ALPA's risk problem and have developed a likely template for what will occur next.

Read more at the DPA site.... ALPA MUST GO!

TWA potential damages: Are you ready for a dues increase? Read more: TWA Damages
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"OVERPAID EXECUTIVE OF THE WEEK"

We’d like to introduce you to United–Continental Holdings’ recently severed R. Keith Halbert. Mr. Halbert joined UAL as executive vice president and chief information officer back in December 2007, about the same time many of our previously furloughed pilots joined Continental. But Mr. Halbert’s story is much different from that of our furloughed pilots, who are still recovering from losing their homes—or worse,- their families—because of the financial hardships they endured. Mr. Halbert “separated” from the company in May, after just over three years of service with the company. But don’t worry about him having to tough it out during these hard times. His severance package includes $3 million in cash as well as the opportunity to train his replacement at a “consulting fee” of $750 per hour, up to 1,000 hours (or another $750,000 for half a year’s work).

What we find most interesting about Mr. Halbert’s departure is that the delay in this merger right now is due to IT integration problems, which Mr. Halbert was responsible for. Glad he took his money and ran before solving that one last “minor” detail.

At least he was merely a “consultant” for the major “computer glitch” over Father’s Day weekend this year, which led to approximately 40 canceled flights, 100 delayed departures, and thousands of stranded passengers worldwide.

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Jay Pierce turning pax announcements political...

"It is also completely reasonable that pilots, in an attempt to provide truthful and accurate information to our passengers, may find it helpful to mention in their welcome PA that the flight is being operated by Continental ALPA pilots."

Do you actually think our passengers care whether they are being flown by an ALPA pilot? Our guess is they could care less. On the other hand, they do care if they are being flown by a Continental pilots. We suggest the same wording, but leave out the mention of ALPA.

EWR pilots vote to retain current leadership

EWR reps Jayson Baron, Tara Cook, along with Sec/Tres Tim Boyens were elected to another 3 year term. God help us! We will say a pray these three are up to the task of representing the EWR pilots to the best of ther abilities. If history is any guide, Jayson Baron will continue to rely on a very small group of devout followers as his base. Let's hope Jayson can control his temper and his diet. Please don't count on Tara Cook returning phone calls or emails anytime soon. After all, the EWR pilots are not as smart as she is. The EWR pilots spoke loud and clear that they did not want to change leadership. Unfortunately, we will all have to wait and see if they can deliver the goods. They haven't been able to deliver anything yet. Why not give them another 3 years to figure that out?  Please say a prayer for our future. 

A plea from the EWR reps:  Please keep us together!

"This is the most critical time we will ever face in our careers - we have both the most important contract of our careers, and our seniority list integration, ahead of us. It is critical to keep our team, a team in which we complement each other's strengths so very well, together. Each member of our team has our strong points, and the sum of our parts is much more than what each of us brings to the table as individuals."

The current EWR leadership is 100% correct. This is the most critical time we will ever face in our careers. This contract and seniority list integration will effect you and your families for decades to come. Where we disagree 100% : "keeping the team, a team which apparently complements each other so well, together". If there was ever a time to rid ourselves of these individuals is NOW! What exactly have these three accomplished in their tenure? Absolutely nothing. They couldn't even fulfill their campaign promises. Jayson Baron's unique ability to open his mouth and insert foot is unparalleled in union history. When it comes to communication, Tara Cook is the queen for not communicating with her constituents. If you have already voted, we only hope you consider what the future will bring with what you have seen with their brand of leadership. If you are tired of business as usual all the way to the top, we suggest a change, Human beaings historically do not like change, In this case change will be welcome and is  necessary.

The Newark LEC election and beyond

The Newark pilots are in the hot seat. Do they elect the same leadership, or perform a clean sweep opting for new leadership? The IAH pilots saw through the political, mostly pathetic attempt for MEC Chairman Pierce to rid himself of the reps that would not fall in line. What did Pierce end up with: two more reps that still don't fall in line. Now it's the EWR pilots turn to say yes or no to business as usual. The rhetoric is flying along with a few pales of mud for good measure. Take a look at where we are as a union. How will this election change the way we are doing business? Do we opt for the same leadership that has proven our union is nothing more than a good old buys club? We don't mean good in the sense they are good, far from it. We are hearing on several occasions how all LEC reps are not consulted in all union matters. Isn't this why each pilot has a vote? We elect reps to represent our interests. If they aren't all being consulted, what do you end up with? It's no longer a democracy. What we are seeing is the wholesale breach of the word representation. We are seeing our MEC chairman using three reps (Baron and Cook in EWR, and Persons from CLE) to further his quest to either a management position, a top level ALPA position, or just settle for the joint MEC chairman position. Pierce lied before about his aspirations for the VP position at ALPA. No sooner did he say he was only interested in the MEC chairman position, and then announces his candidacy for the VP office at National. We all know how that turned out. We have no doubt Pierce has Fred Abbott on speed dial. Why do we trust Pierce with our futures? Why do we trust the EWR Lec reps with our futures? Pierce seems to say all the right fighting words, but it's his actions which speak louder. It is the same for Baron and Cook with the "Magenta Line". All talk no action. Chest beating rarely accomplishes anything. Pierce is a figure head. He is supposed to take direction from the LEC reps (in this case only 3). Pierce is not the total problem. Ultimately it's the reps we elect. Pierce needs to be told what to do, not the other way around.  Other than group events, what exactly has Baron and Cook accomplished? They haven't fulfilled their campaign promises to this date. Thanks to Baron and Cook, Pierce directed money meant for CAL merger activities to be transferred to the UAL MEC. Now the union is asking for an assessment? What are we missing here? We have several feeding at the FTTL trough that should be flying the line. Make them do fly back like they are required to do, and there will be a substantial savings, enough saving to perhaps forgo an assessment. What is this assessment really about? Is it for our benefit, or those at the ALPA trough, to keep some reps and all the pilots in the dark? Some have said now is not the time to change horses. What have we accomplished in the contract arena? The word stagnation comes to mind. Do you really expect earth shattering news with the current LEC leadership in office in the near future? Stay tuned for the "Magenta (brainwash) Line.  If you were the company would you deal with our union as it stands today? A change in LEC leadership and a new direction at the top just might mean getting a contract sooner rather than later. We are obviously chasing our collective tails now. The longer this takes the more pissed off the pilots are getting. The company doesn’t care because they have the fiscal advantage thanks to union leaders of the past. We know the choice lies with the EWR pilots. Our collective futures are in their hands. Will they follow the IAH pilots and seek change for the better, or do we continue down the same path banging our head against the wall? The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result. If you are a IAH pilot, now is the time to call your friends in EWR and beg them for a change in direction, a change the IAH pilots started.

Above all, please sign in and vote. This is your right as a dues paying member. If you don't vote, you are letting someone else make life changing decisions for you and your family. This may the most important vote you will ever make in your career.  This vote will shape the JCBA, integration, you careers and beyond. Bottom line...who do you trust? 

Voting instructions:

The ballot opens on October 18, 2011 at 1000 and closes on November 10, 2011 at 1000.  You can access the ALPA balloting system by going to https://www.alpa.org.  Click on the Members Only icon on the top right corner of your screen.  Log on to your Crewroom homepage with your ALPA Membership number and intranet password. Click on the "VOTE" graphic on the upper right hand side of your screen.  Type in the two security words to verity your information with BallotPoint.  Once verified, you will be automatically passed through to the ALPA balloting system - already logged on and ready to vote. For security purposes, each time you vote using this method, you will receive an email at the email address on file with ALPA confirming the single-use password generated by BallotPoint.

You may also vote either by phone (1-888-647-1787) or on-line at https://www.ballotpoint.com/alpa. You will need to enter your 7 digit VIN (voter identification number) and your 4 - 8 digit PIN (personal identification number).  If you have never established or have misplaced your voter credentials, you can get a replacement activation code by logging on to https://crewroom.alpa.org/votecode

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Jay Pierce is out of control!!

 The assessment vote looms.

It has been brought to our attention that our beloved MEC chairman, Jay Pierce is making unilateral decisions without the rest of the MEC's knowledge. When we say the rest, we mean the LAX, GUM, and IAH reps. When the merger was announced, the CAL and UAL MEC's accepted 5 million dollars paid monthly for merger related activities from the company. Each MEC receives approximately $250k per month to pay for all merger related expenses. It seems the CAL MEC wasn't using all the money. The UAL MEC was spending over $310K each month (over the budget). The CAL MEC was only using $210K of that money per month. What happened to the $40K that was leftover? Seems Jay Pierce in his infinite wisdom decided to give the UAL MEC the money we didn't use. Are we getting this right? Our MEC chairman is giving money to the other side? Now the union wants to assess the CAL pilots for merger related activities? If you do the math, we are talking about $480K over a period of a year. We are sure this money could be used for something constructive like trip loss or a first class seat for Jay Pierce's wife on a union junket. Which reps knew about this?  Jayson Baron, Tara Cook (EWR reps) and John Person (CLE rep now based in EWR) were the only ones who knew about the money exchange. It appears the rest of the LEC officers didn't know about this "give away". Why didn't the rest of the MEC know about this? Here is where the "out of control" part comes in.  Jay Pierce does not tell all the reps everything that's going on, only those who support him, namely Jayson Baron, Tara Cook, and John Person. These three are all he needs (roll call voting) to go forward with his agenda, whatever that is. Why bother telling the rest of the reps what is going on. Does this sound bad to you? It sure does to us.

The union is now asking to assess the CAL pilots for merger related activities. Recall this merger was the company’s idea, not the pilot’s idea. Why do we have to pay for this merger? We are still waiting for a financial accounting of the money used so far. We are still waiting for an accounting of contract 02 for God's sake! Now we hear our union is giving away money we aren't using? The company is going to pay for all the costs of this merger. Our union wants the pilots to fund this merger until the company pays us back. When will that be? How much of this assessment will ALPA collect for "accounting fees" when and if we get any of it back? Does this sound bad to you? It sure does to us.

Not only do we need to vote NO on this assessment, we need to have a change in leadership.  Jay Pierce and his "friends" need to find something else to do. How do we bring about this change? The pilots in EWR have to make a choice between voting for Baron and Cook (which will bring us more stellar representation from Jay Pierce), or voting to change the course of this union by electing new leaders in EWR. Our union is not representing your best interests. EWR pilots: it's time to change the course of this union.

Stay tuned for election coverage.

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New Operation Orange video release showing Smisek's (Mein Furhur) Final Days in WHQ Bunker. How funny is this!

Smisek video
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Sign of the times:


A picture is worth a thousand words!

Dignity and respect is a two way street Jeff!

The company is blaming  sick calls as some sort of labor action. The union is denying it. Do you notice companies like UAL, and just recently USAir like to cry wolf when they feel labor is exercising their right to call in sick when they are really sick, and being deliberate in flying safe? The company is merely hiding behind the RLA. The truth of the matter?? They want their cake and eat it too. No sharing either! CAL is understaffed and the company won't admit it. Reserves are double pumped and fatigued. Junior manning is a daily occurrence. Our question to our passengers?? Would you rather have a sick and fatigued pilot operating your flight, or a healthy, well rested pilot at the controls? Contract negotiations have nothing to do with any sick calls. The company is using the media for attention. Maybe if we are lucky, the BOD and stock holders will see through this and make some needed changes. One comment made by a pilot was " As the stock falls, the company will declare war on the pilots to deflect attention from the real problem of their ill-thought merger. Smisek will get rid of Abbott and the BOD will in turn get rid of Smisek." Interesting hypothesis. 

Smisek quoted...

"We are not going to repeat the mistakes of the past and create an unsustainable cost structure." "That's not good for anyone."

Really Jeff? Of course you won't repeat the mistakes of the past. Of course it's not good for everyone. That means you would have to share a bigger piece of the pie with your employees. You know, the employees you have so much respect for? What exactly are the mistakes of the past Jeff? Is it that management didn't screw the pilot group hard enough for more concessions with contract 02? Is it that you just don't want to give up those concessions out of respect for what the pilot group gave up in contract 02? Is it a mistake to treat the pilots with dignity and respect? You want to take care of your buddies in management first, and the shareholders. You don't respect your fellow employees. Your employees are responsible for this profit, not you. A $538 million dollar profit was announced, even with fuel prices up. What is your definition of "unsustainable"? $538 million in profit in a "bad economy" with fuel prices up? Making a profit means you are doing something right.We bet you will award your managers handsomely with bonuses for the latest profit. How about the rest of your front line employees? Now go back your office and try to find another excuse to dis your fellow employees and pretend we are equals.

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Please visit www.operationorange2011.org for an explanation of what happened to our industry. We would like to thank these patriots for speaking out.

(Caution: The information contained on this website could be construed as a violation of the RLA. We do not support this website or it's views. We are only making you aware of it's existence.)
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May 3rd, 2011:

It's our one year anniversary of the merger announcement between Continental and United Airlines. Management excitement is ongoing. Changes are slow, but according to the company, on schedule. The only exception is a pilot contract. Why don't we have a contract? Simple answer, the company isn't in a big hurry. The combined company has the advantage of previous contracts negotiated with the help of ALPA national through both MEC's. The worst contracts ever negotiated for any labor force doing the same work. What leverage does the combined pilot group have at their disposal? The word synergy comes to mind. Smisek sold a bill of goods to the stock holders of grandiose synergies and a world class airline. The company wants a single certificate. Unfortunately this will take time, longer than anticipated. Seems the FAA isn't satisfied with combination on a few levels. We will continue to watch the merger as it unfolds.

This website is also celebrating its one year anniversary. One year ago we embarked on a website that would be informational in content. Our sole purpose is to inform both pilot groups of news and information not readily available through the union and the company. We would like to thank the thousands upon thousands of pilots from CAL and UAL along with many airlines for visiting our site and for the contributions of information posted. Rest assured, we will be here giving an independent view and voice on current events and union matters. We look forward to another year of pressuring all parties to a successful end product.


Update on EWR LEC 170 recall:

A few staff members attended the LEC 170 meeting and recall election held on the 9th of March in EWR. The attempt by Captain Randy Newman to recall Jayson Baron and Tara Cook was withdrawn due to the further division this would cause in the base. It was also compounded by several raucous members who didn't allow Captain  Newman to speak freely. The atmosphere was tense indeed. We even heard of one member threatening physical violence against another member. How professional and immature. We wish we could report better news. We were hoping the EWR pilots could continue the changes made in IAH, get rid of Pierce, and finally take control of the union. The tone of the meeting was rather contentious from the start. The large turnout was no doubt a change from previous meetings held in EWR. Several members made comments and presentations, including Jay Pierce, Tom Alnatt, Dave Owens, Jayson Baron, and Larry Beck. Jayson Baron spent what seemed an eternal amount of time talking, and saying nothing. We couldn't help but notice the continued nasty unprofessional commentary made by several members toward Randy Newman and the outgoing IAH reps. Jay Pierce once again explained why the recall happened in IAH. We guess if you explain something enough times, it becomes the truth. Pierce said his position became untenable due to the IAH reps causing a supposed division in the MEC. He specifically stated that "it was within his authority to report what was going on in IAH with the reps Brett and Sherry". This is rather strange and unprecedented for a sitting MEC chairman to take this approach with local reps. We guess Pierce forgot who he works for. Jay Pierce and others started a campaign to destroy these two reps with lies and stories made up to get an emotional response from the IAH pilots. This probably would not have happened if the IAH reps had supported Pierce for First VP at national. This was political payback for an election that wasn't even close. Pierce also stated in the past that he would not seek re-election as MEC chairman because he could not work with the IAH reps. After Pierce's attempts to achieve higher office failed, he realized he had shot himself in the foot. With no office to run for, and not wanting to work under a contract he partially wrote and promoted, he simply started a smear campaign to rid himself of these two (hero) trouble makers in IAH. After the first barrage of personal attacks by a few speakers aimed at Randy Newman, former Captain Rep Al Brandano specifically asked the members, Jay Pierce and Jayson Baron to stop with the personal attacks. This was not helping to unify this pilot group. (WARNING FOR LANGUAGE) Not heeding Brandano's appeal, and during Baron's rebuttal of charges against him, Baron in typical immature fashion said the following about Sherry Quekemeyer's supposed control over Brett Walker, "Sherry has her hand so far up Brett's ass that she makes his lips move". YES, BARON ACTUALLY SAID THIS WHILE IN SESSION! This was met with several members calling on Baron to stop the personal attacks on members of the union. Seems Baron likes to do the same thing that he accuses others of doing, shooting from the hip. Later on Baron continued his personal attack on the former IAH reps saying that if you don't agree with Sherry, she will destroy you. We guess Baron just couldn't handle a strong willed person like himself. Baron is only practicing the old divide and conquer techniques the company loves to use. His immature, narcissist attitude will be the demise of this pilot group. This is not the definition of pilot representation! The rest of the meeting was filled with information as only can be delivered by our union. One interesting bit of information did come out. Randy Newman reported a reprehensible attack by CALALPA Vice Chairman Doug Marotta aimed at a member on LTD. Marotta sent an email from his personal account to several MEC reps. Seems his distaste for Mark Benton (Calforums owner) went over the edge by stating that "he would personally take care of him." While we aren't privy to the complete story, it seems our union reps will do whatever they have to do to silence those who speak out against the union. It's too bad some of our reps spend more time silencing members than actually listening and representing pilots. Congratulations Capt Marotta for bringing union representation to a new low. In conclusion, Baron's immature acts were part of why the recall was placed on the agenda. Broken campaign promises, were also the highlight. We are guessing the EWR members present like this type of representation: the tough, immature, hard hitting low approach. Now that the recall vote was withdrawn, we are left with status quo. The rest is now written in typical ALPA union history. We hope that the new IAH reps Eric Hunter and Ben Salley will continue the fight on behalf of Sherry and Brett.


Reflecting March 4, 2011

On this day, March 4, 2011, absolutely nothing of any importance happened. Unless you consider the re-election of Jay Pierce, Doug Marotta and Randy Hodge to the MEC leadership important. Seems our LEC reps, with the exception of a few brave souls, decided that status quo is better than a change in leadership. Jay Pierce and friends have succeeded in squashing any attempts of the so needed change in leadership this pilot group desires. No wonder our pilots are in such a funk. When you can't rid the union of management friends, you tend to lose faith in your union and sometimes your fellow pilots. Jayson Baron and Tara Cook once again backed Jay Pierce's regime. Go figure. We have heard from many pilots saying they wanted change at the top. They even called Baron and Cook to express this desire. Apparently Baron and Cook weren't listening. They probably feel they are golden or perhaps untouchable. Please don't lose your total faith though. The IAH pilots did look beyond the lies Jay Pierce used to remove Brett Walker an Sherry Miller from office. What Pierce didn't count on was the IAH pilots electing two interim reps that are not friendly to Pierce's regime. Pierce thought he could create an emotional firestorm of lies, to assure himself and his regime of continued full time trip loss and all the perks that go with it. He succeeded, or did he? This plan may have backfired on Pierce. Electing new interim IAH reps that weren't friendly to Pierce didn't seem to matter. Pierce still had enough votes to regain office. Once again, don't lose total faith. Hats off to the IAH pilots for taking the first step in a change that still has a chance of succeeding. We will see how Pierce's political game of lies and the IAH interim rep election plays out at the EWR LEC meeting on March 9.  Jayson Baron and Tara Cook will answer to their constituents at that meeting. We are sure Pierce and perhaps Marotta will be there to support Baron and Cook, just like Pierce and Marotta showed up at the IAH meeting to destroy Walker and Miller. Please don't miss the fireworks! Let's see if the EWR pilots have the fortitude to remove "the legs" out from underneath Pierce's chair. Let see if the EWR pilots will follow through and demand the change they talk about. Let's see if the EWR pilots can finish the job the IAH pilots started!

If you can't make the meeting, it's okay. Someone has to keep the airline running. Please don't be left out. Proxy forms will be allowed for your vote to count. If you need a copy of the proxy form, and someone to carry it for you, please contact us. We will be glad to send you the forms for you to fill out, or you may download the form from our website. We are also looking for pilots who are willing to carry proxies into the meeting. Please contact us. Those attending are allowed to carry three proxies. We will get you in contact with your fellow pilots to make this happen. Don't hesitate. The career you save may be your own.

Download proxy form here:

PROXY FORM

The forms must be filled out correctly. Please see instructions below:

“Consideration of Recall of CA Jayson Baron” and “Consideration of Recall of F/O Tara Cook.”  You may include the consideration for both Jayson and Tara on a single proxy form.

Any questions, please contact us at info@savecalpilots.com

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Commentary:

The history of union stickers, bracelets and bag tags. This was sent to us anonymously.

In 2005 during the vote for CO02 we had the Miracle Lure sticker with a very nice picture of the 787 and a fishing lure. This was supposed to be symbolic and a HELL NO to management on the lure of new equipment in exchange for retirement, work rules, pay and our bidding system. Two weeks after that sticker hit the streets our MEC wrote and voted YES for CO02 and gave the company just about everything we had to give.

A few months after ratification many of our giving pilots came down with buyer’s remorse for the worst contract in our careers. They discovered we lost our first class crew rest seat on the 757 and 767. With in weeks we had a superb bag tag in color with a coach seat and some verbiage that I can't remember. The creators of this sticker put it all on the line with their necks in the chopping block but it was in the interest of safety.  I am sure it was a catchy phrase even if I can’t remember it. Five years later we are still in coach and the sticker has worn out.

Three years ago, Prater stood up in the Wall Street rally and declared the "loan is due". Within days, we had another beautiful bag tag most likely made by one of Prater's union brothers and sisters. Then we had the clock is ticking. That was a very creative clock sticker which symbolized time was running out for the company and they had better pay us or else!

Shortly after the successful "loan is due" campaign the company furloughed 147 pilots. Within days, we had several versions of the save the 147 sticker. After two years the 147 stickers were successful and they are back or are they? I just flew with one the other day and he told me he is still on 1st year pay at $30k per year. This pilot told me he was starting to think the company brought the 147 back to be cheap summer help.

Prater is always thinking and fighting for us so he started the "TAKEN IT BACK" campaign complete with slogan and stickers of course. Now we are no longer TAKEN IT BACK but we are "TAKEN IT IN THE BACK"

Prater followed up with an ALPA magazine cover that said "ALPA'S GOT YOUR BACK" The BACK was very popular that year. Prater made that declaration after "WE" voted for an assessment to pay for health care for the furloughed 147.

Fast forward that clock, and now the loan is no longer due, but in default. The good news is that we are now into the "GET SERIOUS" mode. This campaign has a sticker and id thingy that hangs below your company id so the world and the company can see how serious we are. I am sure a passenger or two would like to know what we are serious about? I am also sure they want to pay higher fares so we are not so serious. Somewhere between “get serious” and “are you serious” campaigns, we had the "NOT WITHOUT PILOTS" sticker. That one never caught on but it looked and sounded great.

After reading this thread I am encouraged the UAL pilots question this form of radical labor unrest. It’s a good thing I read this because I was just about to propose my own sticker called "ITS OVER" followed up by the traditional "WE ARE SCREWED" with a cute little picture of a pilot on all fours.

I forgot to mention the very effective FUPM bracelet in several colors. This was also a very successful campaign and scared the hell out of management so they decided to merge with UAL

I will put my stickers on hold for now. I will say welcome to all those UAL pilots who would like to try a different form of labor unrest. I hope this answers your question on how these stickers are working out for us.

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Jay Pierce has a contract for you! Rumor or fact?

We have just received word that Jay Pierce intends on introducing a "quickie" JCBA contract. Details are not completely clear at this time, however we do know the agreement includes a paltry 5% raise over Delta 12 year rates and a 2 year time frame. There is little or no changes to work rules and PBS. As far as we can tell, there is no change to any enhancement to retirement. Jay is just trying to help the company complete the merger. While this may sound wonderful to some, remember we all deserve better than this. Our vote is worth a hell of a lot more than his proposal is worth. Why does Jay Pierce want a quickie contract? Is there an expiration date for his departure to management? We find this announcement rather ironic since Pierce was able to rid himself of Brett and Sherry in IAH. The road is now clear for Jay Pierce to shove another substandard contract down our throats. The last time the Continental pilots had any real leverage was just after contract 02 passed. We had a chance to reopen the contract because the flight attendants didn't ratify their contract. Jay Panarello blew off that leverage off. We guess Jay Pierce will do the same figuring the merger synergies are not considered leverage. Where do we find these people, and why do we put up with this CRAP?  As Brett pointed out in his blastmail, "that light at the end of the tunnel is a freight train about to run us over". Time to get out of the way and let this train pass!

For those of you doubting couch potatoes out there, please verify this information with your reps. We are sure they will tell you it isn't true. Buyer beware! This contract is being brought to you by "ALPA: Management's Union"!

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Final blastmail from IAH Reps Brett Walker and Sherry Miller:

All,

Now that Sherry was recalled, we would like to express our gratitude to all of you who showed your support.  The vote was extremely close which shows a division in this base.  I do not want to further divide this group.  Therefore, I am tendering my resignation as I indicated I would do in an earlier blastmail.   While this may seem like the end to many of you, realize it is really just the beginning.  You all have a decision to make in our replacements.  Are you willing to allow the next phase of the plan to be implemented by the management “want –to-be’s” and good ole boys club who’s goal is to serve up this pilot group for their cushy desk jobs?  Or, are you going to choose wisely and try to find two replacements who will stand tall as this group’s voice; who will not compromise their principles; who will not cave on a substandard TA; and, who will continue to vote against “carve outs” and special deals for the friends of those in power?

Frankly folks, the powers that be aren’t too smart.  Smart leaders know “keep your friends close and your enemies closer.”  Sherry and I are now free to speak our opinions and present analysis of the failures of the system.  After we spend some much needed time resting from the current battle and getting my sixteen year old son settled (I just gained custody), we plan to be available to answer any and all questions.  Meanwhile, I’ll leave you with these final thoughts.

There are some who say getting a contract now is more important than getting the right contract.  I disagree.  Doing this right rather than quickly must be our goal.  This Tentative Agreement will set the basis for all future amendable dates.  Michael Boyd of The Boyd Group stood before your MEC last May and stressed the importance of making management pay for the smile on our faces.  He said we have one shot and this is it.  Meanwhile, there are those in the union hall who still have the mind-set  that the pizza is only so big ,and we are merely moving around the toppings.  I’ve heard others say that “the company cannot afford this contract” or “I’m afraid the pilots’ expectations are too high.”  I say hogwash!

It is up to you and me, the line pilots, to hold our union’s feet to the fire.  I hope the good ole boys club and management “want- to-be’s” know that we will be watching their every move.  Honestly, right now I have more faith in the UAL MEC than the CAL MEC with regards to ensuring we get what we deserve in a CBA and with regards to who is protecting the best interests of us Line pilots.  Remember, unlike those professional union types who live on Full Time Flight Pay Loss, we fly the line.  Never forget that this will be our contract, too.

I know many of you may now see a light at the end of the tunnel.  Be careful, it could very well be the headlight on the train that is heading straight for us.  While I won’t say I told you so later, for now I’ll just say I sure hope you can eventually live with what you are wishing for.  Again, we thank you for the opportunity to serve, and frankly for giving us our lives back.

As Always, Fly Smart and Fly Safe

Brett Walker
Sherry Miller

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The following links below contain evidence exonerating  the IAH reps of wrong doing at the Florida BOD meeting.  Also included is an explanation of what occurred, and  trip loss documentation. Jay Pierce and friends went out of their way to frame these two innocent reps.  Jay Pierce lead the charge to recall these two reps using lies as facts. How much more is this pilot group going to take in the form of Jay Pierce politics? Enough is enough! Unfortunately, IAH F/O Rep Sherry Quekemeyer was recalled today. Brett Walker was not recalled. As a show of solidarity with Sherry, Brett resigned. We lost the last bastian of pilot reps supporting pilots today. God only knows who Jay Pierce and friends will appoint (support) for these reps seats. The bottom line is...Jay Pierce and friends are LIARS! Jay Pierce is no better than a dictator! Jay Pierce is a disgrace and should resign. We know he won't. We can always hope.

Emails

Trip Loss

BOD explanation

A personal note of importance to all Continental Pilots:

Our careers and future dreams may be on the chopping block for the next several weeks. Our union has succeeded in the past by using the apathy quotient against this pilot group. This is not the time for increased apathy to gain a foothold. Being united against outsourcing is the current fight. At this time, we as a pilot group should be UNITED against UNITED! Instead our MEC leaders are engaged in a war within we are calling "United against those who won't walk Jay Pierce's union line". Our union is devoted to silencing those who speak out. Our union is committed to eliminating the other side. They call those who speak out against the union "union busters". Could it be these "union busters" are right, and those running the union are wrong? Our MEC fears free thinkers within our union. The only way to control them is through lies and deception. Our union has succeeded in keeping valuable information from this pilot group throughout the years. Our union has destroyed what faith our pilots had through political mudslinging and deception. This lack of information and communication creates a void and uneasiness. This pilot group has always complained about the communication from our union. Our union hides behind its "executive sessions". Without information, our pilot group naturally gravitates toward any information they can get their hands on, even though it's not
factual. Right now Jay Pierce, Doug Marotta, and minions are doing all the talking, using our union dues to spread lies. Our pilot group is craving leadership. In the absence of leadership, our pilot group will unfortunately listen to anyone who steps up to the microphone. Are we that desperate? Publishing lies about reps and members in good standing is now the norm. Why does our union operate like this? What is their motive? Will they achieve an industry leading contract by de-unifying this pilot group with these political maneuvers? We hope the EWR and IAH pilots are smarter than those who are running our union. They expect your apathy and thirst for their lies to be accepted as the truth. Their truth causing you to make the decision they want you to make, not what is in your best interest. 

The recall of IAH reps Brett Walker and Sherry Quekemeyer ends tomorrow at 10 AM eastern standard time (9am IAH time)

Jay Pierce and Doug Marotta, with the help of two IAH CPO management "wannabes" and others have succeeded in calling for the electronic election recall of IAH Reps Brett Walker and Sherry Quekemeyer. Your first question should be: why would our MEC chairman and Vice chairman along with these management "wannbes" want to remove these reps? What have they done to deserve this recall? They are doing there job they were elected to do. Never mind the untrue allegations of wrongdoing at the Florida ALPA BOD meeting. So far Jay Pierce has not offered any proof in writing of any wrong doing. The facts are clear. Both Brett and Sherry have documents to prove they are innocent. They have shown them to many of the IAH pilots. There was no wrongdoing. The only information was a rambling manifesto written by IAH Sec/Tres Introligator. What was his motive behind this manifesto? Was he building unity? Or was he just following the orders of a union Chairman and Vice Chairman who so desperately want to stay in office to finish the job they started on behalf of the company? ALPA National cleared both these reps of any pay issues they were accused of. Did Jay and friends tell you that? Jay Pierce made a promise not to run for re-election for MEC Chairman because he says he can't work with the IAH reps. His statement speaks volumes considering Jay Pierce's management past. The choice is yours of course. We ask you to consider your future under Jay Pierce and Doug Marotta. Will it be better than your future under the steadfast representation of Brett Walker and Sherry Quekemeyer? You want to make a change at the top? Vote to retain these two reps. These reps have voted against the popular "union thinking". They are representing your best interests. They need to stay in office if only to keep the union on its toes. Please tell your fellow IAH pilots to cast their vote to retain Brett Walker and Sherry Quekemeyer

Upcoming EWR LEC meeting:

The meeting on February 2nd was cancelled due to an east coast weather event. This was the right decision. While the meeting was cancelled, it should have been rescheduled before the MEC meeting. The vote of the members present asking for the recall Jayson Baron and Tara Cook will not take place until the next
scheduled meeting on March 9. If successful this will force an electronic recall election later in the month. This meeting/ vote will occur after the re-appointment to the chairmanship. We know Baron and Cook will vote for Pierce and Marotta. Jayson
and Tara are playing dirty politics. This will be one more reason to add to the many to recall these two reps.  Pierce, Marotta (no medical on full time trip loss), Baron (no medical), and Cook are UNITED against us! Does Jayson Baron and Tara Cook need to be replaced? The answer is a resounding yes. Some have asked what the ramifications would be in replacing these reps during what has been perceived as an important time in the JCBA negotiations. We will tell you this much. There is no better time than right now! We will not see a contract for years. Those on the Negotiating committee (those who are left after the mass exodus) will tell you the same thing. Jayson Baron and Tara Cook have not accomplished one thing for this pilot group since they have been in office. If you don't believe us, ask them what they have accomplished. They have done a wonderful job of talking down to their constituents though.  There lack of communication skills is evident just by looking at the union bulletin board in the EWR crew room. The Magenta line is nothing like it was. Have you seen the LEC 170 website? It's substandard. For those of you who email or call either rep, do they return your calls and emails? Most have said no. Jayson Baron does not have a medical. Are his medical problems getting the way of being a rep? It isn't a secret that Jay Pierce's chief cheerleaders are Jayson Baron and Tara Cook. The only way to cut the head off a snake (which happens to be Jay Pierce) is to recall Jayson Baron and Tara Cook. Only then we will take control of our union and our collective futures. Time to clean house!

Thank you for you taking the time to read this. If you are a  Houston pilot and wish to change your vote to retain Brett and Sherry there is still time!
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Jay Pierce: Politics as usual, reaching a new low

Jay Pierce is an excellent politician. He knows how to work a crowd (this pilot group) saying the things he wants you to hear. He is simply the talking head for the company and ALPA National. We are not quite sure which is worse.

During a recent CALALPA town hall, pilot Kate Malone told Jay Pierce to knock off the personal attacks on the IAH reps. Seems Jay Pierce heeded her advice for a little while. Politicians like Jay Pierce never remain silent for long. His true feelings and agenda reared its ugly head at the IAH LEC meeting just recently. Seems Jay Pierce and friends asked that a recall vote be called to oust the IAH reps. They succeeded with the recall vote by a very slim margin.  An electronic vote of the IAH pilot membership will take place in the near future. 

Recent events at the IAH LEC meeting proves that Jay Pierce and friends (to be named later in the commentary) decided to attack the IAH LEC reps at this IAH LEC meeting. What nerve for the MEC Chairman and friends to show up to an LEC meeting and attack the integrity and credibility of the Houston reps. According to witnesses, Jay Pierce questioned Brett Walker's credibility in front everyone attending. We hear it was a "heated discussion". Jay Pierce's friends, Norm (IAH check airman, APD, CPO wannabe) Gustitus, Marty (check airman, CPO wannabe) Schupp, Doug (I don't have an FAA medical, full time trip loss sweetheart deal, VC of CALALPA) Marotta, Brian (COM chairman, Father of the defunct Union forum) Bagenski, Mike (Former SPSC chairman/ Butter Beans, wannabe Captain rep) Jones, along with the infamous Eric "Gator" (IAH Sec Treasurer) Introligator joined forces to promote the recall of the only CALALPA reps that are willing to stand up to Jay Pierce and Doug Marotta head to head. This political assassination is pay back for not supporting Jay Pierce for First Vice President at the Florida BOD meeting. Jay said he wasn't going to run for National office. We guess he changed his mind at the last minute. Some kind of credibility, huh. Without the endorsement of the IAH reps, was Pierce doomed? Not really. Pierce lost by a wide margin. The Houston reps votes wouldn't have mattered. This recall is "political payback". Does this help unity and foster strength in the eyes of our UAL peers? No. Jay Pierce also said he would not seek re-election to CAL MEC Chairmanship if the IAH reps were still in office. He was quoted as saying he can't work with them. Why is that? Are Jay Pierce's goals different for this pilot group and the IAH reps? They shouldn't be, or maybe they are. This is a simple a matter of right versus wrong. Pierce basically shot himself in the foot with that comment. Realizing his verbal blunder/ promise, he has decided to seek re-election to the MEC Chairmanship. Of course, the IAH reps stand in his way. It's time to destroy the IAH reps using the lies as facts. Jay Pierce has yet to show proof of any stories he has told or anyone has told. Ask yourself...Why is Pierce and friends doing this to the IAH reps? Get them out of office so Jay Pierce and friends can continue to destroy the Continental pilot group with the help of ALPA? We thought we were all on the same team. We guess not. Does it bother you that Jay Pierce and Doug Marotta of the MEC along with members working for the IAH CPO would seek the recall of the Houston reps? What's next? Will the IAH CPO dictate to Jay Pierce and friends who they want in office if this recall is successful? Is this so they can secure a 9-0 vote as a selling point to this pilot group? This is scary stuff. The stuff of which contract 02 was born. We suggest you look through the Pierce rhetoric, and see this coup for what it is. The company through Jay Pierce will do anything to get rid of the IAH reps in order to get a 9-0 vote on the JCBA. They will stoop so low as to lie about the only CALALPA reps that genuinely show concern for the well being of this pilot group. The Houston pilots are smarter than to fall for more Jay Pierce political bullshit. Who do you trust, a leader who signed off and promoted contract 02, or two reps that are willing to fight for this pilot group? We suggest a vote to retain these IAH reps, and send Jay Pierce and friends packing!

Next up: Jay Pierce and friends take their political message on the road to EWR on February 2nd. A consideration for the recall of Jay Pierce's closest friends and allies Jayson Baron and Tara Cook will take place. We know Jay will promote the exploits of Jayson and Tara, unlike the political thrashing he gave Brett and Sherry. Of course, Jayson and Tara are in Jay Pierce's back pocket. That's all the more reason to recall Jayson Baron and Tara Cook. With Tim Boyens emotional plea and rather unstable comments saying he will quit if Jayson and Tara are recalled, there could be a clean sweep...a new start. Jay and friends better be ready for the meeting in EWR. It isn't going to be pretty!

Admin.
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We just received this email from a EWR pilot after reading Tim Boyens, (S/T LEC 170) emotional plea(?) to the EWR pilots to save him from having to resign. Here is the email...

Hello Tim,
Thanks for the heads up on the recall. A good fumigation is long over due. Lets hope we can eliminate those other finely tuned tools of management lurking higher up the Union food chain. Namely Pierce and Earnest. That would certainly make me feel better about my future.

Enjoy your extra time at home.

Name withheld by request

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Tim Boyen's ( S/T LEC 170) passionate plea which was included with the recent magenta line had all the earmarks of a strange rambling manifesto which included the death of Tim's "pet". We have all lost pets, loved ones, and some, even our houses. It's always sad to lose a pet. We wonder what kind of pet it was and how it died. Perhaps Tim can fill us in with the details at the next and his last LEC meeting.

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The sweetheart deals keep coming!

We have  investigated several union "leaders" qualifications. The following union "leaders" do not hold a valid FAA medical certificate:

Jim Brucia..........Merger Committee Chairman

Jayson Baron......LEC 170 Captain Rep

The MEC  voted 5 to 4 to allow Jim Brucia to continue in his position as Merger committee chairman. SWEETHEART DEAL!

We are wondering if these two individuals, along with Doug Marotta are really 100% concerned with the well being of this pilot group? These individuals should step down until they possess a valid FAA medical certificate. Without a medical...it's just a job. You don't have to answer to anyone!

Why does the Vice Chairman of CALALPA, Doug Marotta get a sweetheart deal?

Doug Marotta is the Vice Chairman of CALALPA. Doug Marotta has some serious health issues. We feel for Doug's condition and hope he has a speedy recovery. The problem we have is that Doug Marotta does not have a current medical. He is no longer current to fly Continental Aircraft. How is it that Doug Marotta can remain the VC of CALALPA, and still collect FULL TIME TRIP LOSS compensation? If any other pilot had a medical issue such as Doug Marotta, they would have to collect sick leave till it ran out, then collect 50% of our normal pay as LTD.  A special sweetheart deal was cut by our MEC to allow Doug Marotta to continue to collect his trip loss pay in leiu of collecting less like the rest of us would have to do.  The vote was 7 - 2 in favor of providing Doug Marotta with this special privilage.... our dues money. Who says working in the union doesn't have it's perks?

Another Union Rat jumps Ship...
 
Here is the announcement from National...

"For personal reasons, Captain Bryan Green (CAL) has resigned his position as chairman of the National R&I Committee effective November 19, 2010. Captain Green has served tirelessly as a member of the committee since August 2006 and as chairman since May 2009. We thank Captain Green for his many years of dedicated service on the committee on behalf of all ALPA pilots."

We reported yesterday that Bryan Green was "frustrated" with the R/I proposal in the JCBA. It has been reported that Green resigned from the CALALPA commitee at the December BOD meeting. No word to the membership then. Now National announces that Green resigned over a month ago? Once again, not one word to the membership? What in the hell is going on here? Of course he is leaving for personal reasons. Does the definition of "personal reasons" include his involvement with Dave Earnest, and  that these two are about to be deposed in the QDRO case on January 12, 2011 ? Was his resignation  coincidental with the announcement of a subpoena for him to be deposed by the plaintiffs in the QDRO case? Did he resign because ALPA national tell Green that they can't, or won't help him? One question....Who is left on the CALALPA R/I committee? Dave Earnest? God help us! Does Dave Earnest feel ALPA will protect him in this case and the Ballew case?  Is this the reason he hasn't resigned? Or is it perhaps a promise from the company for their protection? We can't wait for the shit to hit the fan! Dave Earnest, a real union hero! 

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CALALPA Negotiating Chairman tenders resignation, effective January 31, 2011.

Commentary:

We could spend time coming up with many analogies to describe the news announced today. The one that we  settled on was one that describes "rats leaving the sinking ship".

It has been brought to our attention that at least two of our esteemed "leaders" in our union may be doing just that; jumping off the sinking ship. We surely hope and pray our ship is not sinking. Our union tends to leave the membership hanging till it's too late; shades of contract 02. The two individuals we are speaking of are the Negotiating chairman Mark Adams, and the Retirement and Insurance chairman, Andy Sigler. Adams officially tendered his resignation today, effective January 31, 2011. One has to wonder why Adams decided to leave one of the most important positions during the JCBA negotiations. Just when we were getting the news on Adams, we have been told that Andy Sigler, R/I Chairman will also be resigning at the end of January. These two positions hold more weight than all the others combined. "Mark Adams cited his long tenure of union service and the demanding schedule of JCBA negotiations combined with the months spent away from home that have led to this decision". While we do appreciate the personal sacrifice he has made in time away from home, one has to wonder if there is more to his resignation than meets the eye.  Another analogy which could be used is:  "leaving a turd in the punch bowl at the party, and walking out" comes to mind. What are they running away from? Since when do dedicated pilots with an analytical sense walk out before completing the mission? Maybe the mission is complete: shades of contract 02. We are also hearing that Bryan Green from the Retirement and Insurance committee has already resigned the CALALPA R/I committee because he does not like (frustrated) with the retirement package contained in the JCBA. How does Dave Earnest feel about the R/I package? Perhaps Dave Earnest wrote it; shades of contract 02. Once again, Dave Earnest to the rescue! Maybe Bryan Green has a conscience after all. Of course Dave Earnest is management’s friend. He tattled on the QDRO pilots. Thanks Dave for your devotion to the company. After hearing of Green's disgust, one has to wonder what the union has come up with. Are you getting scared yet? Is there a correlation between the election of new CALALPA officers in February and these future resignations? We will have to wait and see. While we really hate to see this kind of upheaval during this most important time, sometimes changes are made for the better. Will it be for the better? One has to wonder what surprises await us in 2011. 

Jay Pierce has been silent as of late. Sure, he continues to write his Friday dribble, filled with promises of acting tough with the company. He never acted tough before. Why start now? He continues to speak like a politician during the town hall telephone conference calls. One caller lambasted Jay pretty well. Jay went silent. Jayson Baron to the rescue. Baron came on the line with his "glowing" endorsement of Jay Pierce as being the best MEC chairman we've ever had. Excuse me while we puke!

Remember those blast mails claiming all manner of sorted details from the Florida ALPA BOD meetings? No proof, just blast mails with no proof. All of a sudden, Jay is silent. No more attacks?  We wonder if someone at national told him to keep his big mouth shut. Jay Pierce stated that he would not seek the chairmanship of CALALPA during the February elections. He stated personal reasons, along with not being able to work with the IAH reps. Of course Jay Pierce also stated that he was not interested in the Vice Chairman position at ALPA national. He lied then, and we are sure he will lie again. Jay Pierce has no interest in flying anymore. He wants an office job. The location is still the mystery. We hope Jay will be a man and stick to his word. Don't count on it. Of course, his decision to run again for CALALPA MEC Chairman will be made easier if the recall of the IAH reps comes to fruition. We wonder how much influence he had on those who pushed this recall idea forward. We are hearing that two former Captain Reps in IAH, Norm Gustitus, and Wayde Beckman are behind this effort along with others such as Marty "I wanna work in the IAH CPO so bad I can taste it" Schupp. Actually, both Marty Schupp and Norm Gustitus already work as check airman in the IAH chief pilot’s office. They just want to get a little deeper into the inner circle. Norm Gustitus was heard preaching to other pilots in the IAH crewroom about how we should give up scope in the JCBA. A real example of someone we don't want running things around here. How can someone work for the company and run a recall effort without a conflict of interest? Who's side are they on, anyway? What part does the IAH CPO have in all this? To round out the field we have John Meyer...MEC Chairman wannabe, and Tony LeClaire...we won't tell you what we heard about this guy. To make this story complete, we hear Wayde Beckman has five days of "training" in January. Could it be Wayde Beckman will be the next recipient of the coveted "check airman status payback" for his helping the company to secure more concessions after contract 02 was ratified? Shades of Tom Stivala. Standby for that announcement. If you don’t believe us, we invite you to check his PBS schedule for January. Once again, we must speak to the porcelin God!

We invite all of you to call these individuals and ask them for yourselves. We did our research. We have our sources. We all look forward to the New Year and the challenges it will bring. We hope to see a major shake up in the leadership at CALALPA and consequently, the direction of the JCBA, SLI and the continuing fight with the new UAL. To quote the union’s latest blast mail: “We know how to rebuild, reinvent and renew.” We wonder when this will truely happen. Nothing will happen unless Jay Pierce and the Vice chairman free loader Doug Moratta are removed from office. Only then will we see change. One can only hope the future will bring welcome changes to the status quo within our union. Otherwise, you better grab a life preserver.
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A UAL pilot Opinion:

As a UAL pilot I appreciate the hard work that went into building this site, but I am equally appalled by the hand wringing and fear mongering that is taking place with so little debate.   I hope you will indulge me for a moment as I attempt to counter some of the more wild assumptions floating around this site.
 
1) CAL pilot career expectations will be torpedoed.
- Prior to this merger no UAL pilot with whom I spoke considered this to be anything other than a merger of equals.  Everyone was excited to be a part of the world's biggest airline and were looking forward to fighting the company together on issues critical to everyone like SCOPE and retirement protections.   
 
- CAL has 300+ plane. UAL has 300+ planes. CAL had firm orders for 86 planes. UAL had firm orders for 50 planes plus 64 737s parked in the desert. Both airlines have been in existence over 3 decades and  although the hiring has not fallen in the same bands, the overall age makeup is similar.
 
 - CAL has retirements of about 4% a year through 2020, and UAL has retirements of about 3% through 2020, but from 2020 to 2030 UAL has retirements of 4% and CAL has retirements less than 3%.
 
-  Recent decisions including the Nicolau USAIr arbitration as well as the DAL/NWA SLI arbitration have both emphasized that only active pilots be considered when  creating an SLI.
 
. . . merging active pilots with furloughees, despite the length of service of some of the latter, is not at all fair or equitable under any of the stated criteria . . .
 
- The ISSL for DAL/NW made no reference to what airplane the relative groups flew and considered only the categories of WB Cap/ NB Cap and WB FO/NB FO.   Even though it is the duty of the UAL MEC and the CAL MEC to posture to the best of their advantage no one is being  fooled.
the parties to this dispute are deeply divided, as is apparent from their respective proposals: Each does little more than stack the deck for their own constituencies in ways that are neither fair nor equitable . . .

. . . we have rejected the notion (proposed, from time-to-time by both parties) of numerous categories, each seeking to define and segregate groups of aircraft according to various operating characteristics. We have chosen, instead, to recognize the fleets as divided simply into wide-body and narrow-body groupings, two for Captains, two for FOs. For purposes of counting aircraft and staffing assumptions, thus creating ratios in each category, we have selected a “snapshot” date of July 1, 2008.
 
I have much more to add, but sadly not enough time at the moment.  Let me finish by saying that I for one am excited to someday fly with my new partners at CAL out of EWR and I don't particularly care if it costs me slightly in the present because I am convinced that if we work together the future holds great pay raises, improvements in QWOL, new base opportunities, 787 and A350 flying plus a whole lot more.  I only hope I have "cracked the door open" for a few of the naysayers here to realize that maybe just maybe we (the UAL pilots) are NOT out to take your jobs and what we bring to the combined company including new bases, new plane types, and so much more is not really all that terrible.
 
 
Sincerely,
Joe Peck

UAL pilot

Savecal pilots response:

Thank you for your comments.  You may have gotten the wrong impression of this site. At CAL, we have many internal union problems. This site is there to add a little pressure to ALPA and CALALPA by helping them realize that we are as made as hell, and we aren't going take this anymore. (Sorry for the movie quote). As you can see, the system is broken. It needs fixing. Unfortunately, ALPA is not the answer. If and when we get through this merger, we too are looking forward to working with our new colleagues. We not only want what was taken from us, the UAL pilots deserve the same thing. If ALPA doesn't get it right this time, they need to be de-certified! We could go on, but will stop for now.

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"Hey EWR, we have a problem!"

"When one pilot has a problem, we all have a problem". This catch phrase published several years ago was meant to bolster trust and unity for our union. It was created to foster an avenue of communication for important issues of concern between the pilot members and our union. Has it really done this or is this nothing more than a "catch phrase"? Take for instance a recent letter sent out by a B777 Captain expressing his concerns and questions regarding the retirement section of the contract. This Captain took the time to research this subject and ask the hard questions. "If one pilot has a problem, we all have a problem". What was the union's response? The magenta line stated the following:

"A letter written by a EWR 777 CA has been making the rounds claiming “so called facts” associated with ALPA JNC’s retirement proposal to United management."

 "There are numerous misstatements and factual inaccuracies in the letter.  So much so that CAL MEC Chairman Captain Pierce assigned JNC Lead Captain Mark Adams and JNC Negotiating Attorney Dan Orfield the task of responding to this letter."

Instead of one pilot having a problem, the EWR rep decided to degrade this respected pilot's view in a blast mail sent to pilots via a member paid blast mail through the union communication system. Is this dignity and respect? An official statement from the union was written. Jayson Baron took yet another opportunity  to take a swipe at a MIGS. The union has always said to bring forth questions and comments that have importance, and have an impact on the well being of this pilot group. Instead of being civil and mature, Jayson Baron decided to take the low road by not treating this Captain, and the rest of us with the respect we deserve. This Captain spent his personal time researching this topic. He did not just shoot from the hip. We are sure he wanted to get this right. It is pilots like this Captain who keep our union on its toes. What was the response from our union?

"In the future, please try and refrain from buying into rumors and innuendos heard by people that think or claim they know. Your MEC will fully vet any TA that is reached by the JNC to determine whether or not it even warrants your consideration prior to putting it out for a vote. If it doesn’t, we will send the JNC back to the table in an attempt to address those areas we feel do not meet the needs of our pilots."

We would like to thank this Captain for taking the time to research this topic, and ask the hard questions. Never be afraid of asking those hard questions. Just because we have a "bully" for a Captain rep representing us in EWR doesn't mean you have to cower in the corner. Let’s keep our union on its toes. If you don’t do it, who will?

The magenta line ends with one more dig at the IAH reps...

"In closing, there has been some concern by some that I (Jayson Baron) have spoken out on issues that should have been better left internal and out of the public limelight, most specifically my comments on the recent CAL MEC Town Hall conference call.   I must respond by stating that you did not elect someone who would sit back idly and watch events unfold that posed significant threats to our pilots without fighting to rectify the situation for the good of our pilots.  What I said on the conference call about our IAH Reps, I truly believe and stand by 100%."

Jayson Baron has stated that he has carte blanche when it comes to saying anything he damn well pleases using our dues money. You have to wonder what Baron's ulterior motive is by taking pot shots at other elected reps (again). We suggest you stop doing this Captain Baron. You really are looking like a narcissistic bully and a fool!

We here at Savecalpilots ask our union to not use our union dues money to send out attacks on fellow members, including the elected reps. We, the pilots of Continental deserve respect from the union as members. This independant website has the right to express its views and those of fellow members. We are here to keep the union on its toes, and will continue into the future.

By the way, the email Jayson Baron received from Savecalpilots did not state facts, only rumors. We even asked if these rumors were true. We are glad to here these rumors are not true. We do believe Jayson Baron asked all pilots to send them rumors for substantiation. We were only doing what he asked all of us to do. What's really sad is Jayson Baron doesn't seem to know the difference between fact and rumor. Otherwise, he wouldn't have copied it to the magenta line.

Admin
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We have received many emails from our pilot members at CAL. Most all of them are positive. The ones that are negative are from those who still believe our union can do no wrong. The same union who lead us to contract 02 and will lead us to the future JCBA. The email below is the poster child for why this website exists. We don't put out the laundry. We strive to give you another view based on facts. Just remember, the union will say anything to keep you and your career under their thumb. Are the reps really listening?

This pilot was asked if he liked the content of our website.

-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Re: Union under seige
From: Greg Saltzman
Date: Tue, October 26, 2010 4:26 am
To: info@savecalpilots.com

No.  I'll tell you why.  Now, more than any time in the recent past, we need unity.  We need to get behind our elected Union representation.  Now is not the time for vendetta's or petty bickering.  If you have a problem with Pierce, or any other elected rep, then man up and contact them and have it out if that's what you want, but above all else, keep the dirty laundry behind closed doors and be discrete.

You are not helping the pilot group, you are weakening it.  I'm sure others are telling you the same thing.  I could give a good goddamn who's sleeping with who.  It really IS about the money after all, and your actions are taking food off my table.

I hope that answers your question. I don't or want or need a reply. Save your energy; the email's been relegated to the SPAM folder.

Our response:

Greg,
 
This is the problem with this pilot group...we have been "relegated" to the spam box by our union. You think for just one second this union of ours isn't doing the same thing? Divide and conquer? Seems Jay Pierce was the one who "aired" the dirty laundry" first. Why did he do this? We are not making this pilot group look weak. Pierce is doing that all by himself with the help of Baron, Cook, Introligator and others. Sure, we need to be behind our elected reps...at what point do you hoist the BS flag? At what point do you say enough is enough? Or do you just continue to wander down the same path that lead us to contract 02? Trust us when we say we have brought several points of contention to Pierce and others. They have been ignored.  We are making you aware that their might be another side to the story. There always is. With our union's track record, the other side of the story is what is weakening us.
 
Good luck Greg... Good luck to all of us! 


To all Continental pilots:

IAH Reps Brett Walker and Sherry Quekemeyer have been asking for the Scope Proposal, which was sent to management as full contractual language, since July.  It was actually CLE Captain Rep, Dan Wenzel who first asked to see the language.  It was Brett who put the request in writing. The SCOPE position was not submitted as a turn sheet, but as full language.  As you know, the mere misplacement of a comma could affect all our careers.  Sherry resubmitted their latest request to Captain Pierce as recently as Thursday evening.  This latest request has been denied. 

Pierce will do anything not to fly.  When he thought he could get a $450,000/year job in DC, he was willing to forsake us all.  Fortunately, DAL, UAL, AE, Alaska, etc., all realized the danger of him being in a corner office in Herndon.  The IAH Reps' small 2000 votes had no influence on the outcome which was 28,000+ for Sean Cassidy and 10,000 for Pierce.  Moak was reported to say that he wanted Pierce and his divisiveness no where near his administration. 

Pierce told the MEC that he wasn't going to run again in March due to personal family reasons.  Now he is telling everyone it is because he cannot work with IAH.  A leader unites not divides.  But, he knows that based on the current Retirement opening position alone, the IAH reps will vote no on any TA.  Our MEC told our half of the JNC that the opening position must at least meet, and preferably exceed, our December 2009 position.  Even members of the R & I committee admit that it comes no where close.  Pierce knows that.  He really didn't care because he thought he was a shoe-in for First VP.  Now he is facing returning to the line by March.  His upward union mobility is finished.

The UAL folks see Pierce for what he is, a traitor to this pilot group since he was willing to abandon us at arguably the most critical time.  They have seen his slanderous comm frought with lies aimed at the IAH Reps. They also have absolutely no love loss for EWR Rep Jayson Baron and his "tough guy" stance.  Baron's Magenta Line, coupled with his bully attitude, has caused them to dig their heels in regarding the 747 Pay rates.  This alone is keeping the JNC from putting Section 3, Compensation, on the table.  We cannot go to the NMB for relief if we don't at least give our opening position on every section.  Smart move Jayson.  It's not about holding the line, we all agree with that.  But rather, its about doing so with respect and tact vs. thumbing your nose at them.  A good debator rarely raises his voice.  They are also amazed that Pierce is spouting off about some supposed deal and cannot believe that even one CAL pilot would believe there was or could ever be any deals outside of the SLI Arbitration.  The only way Pierce can continue to fly a desk is one positioned in the Sear's Tower.  The only way he will get that is if he serves this pilot group up aka Stivala, et. al.  But, he knows he's got to get past the IAH Reps first.  What better way than to have their own constituents take them out.

Pierce's actions, unfounded accusations, and downright lies are an attempt to get the IAH Reps out of the picture so he can have a 9-0 MEC.  If that happens, God help all of us.  Attached is an excerpt from the Town Hall Conference Call from Tuesday.  Former EWR Rep and true States Person, Kate Malone, asks some pretty tough questions regarding our SCOPE proposal.  Note her comment about the hair on the back of her neck standing up and the song and dance she gets.  Current Rep, Tara Cook is on at the end talking about the bullet points, which is exactly the point.  Our Reps have only seen bullet points!  Sorry about the quality at the end. We all need to be asking some pretty tough questions right now.  Meanwhile, the mud slingers from last year's IAH election have surfaced again.  Unfortunately, they have recruited the IAH Sect/Treas, so it seems, since he hasn't returned any of he Chairman's calls for over a month.  Rumor has it he is feeling scorned.

Many of you have known one or both of the IAH Reps for a long time.  Those who know them know that they would never betray this pilot group or lie to you.  Yes, Brett and Sherry are both legally separated and in the processes of divorces.  We believe their personal lives should remain just that, personal.  It has never affected the job they have done up until this point, and they argue it never will.  In fact, the entire MEC has known for some time, without complaint.  Their attorney will get to the bottom of the slander.  However, they are willing to address any legitimate questions at any time. 

More importantly is where we are going as a union.  It appears that history may be repeating itself.  Remember back to Contract 02 and another MEC Chairman by the name of Jay.  He tried to distract the process by attempting to recall Randy Newman, the only Rep asking the tough questions.  Meanwhile, the union sold us down the river.  If IAH gets taken out we are headed down that same path.  Ask the R/ I Committee members.  ALPA doesn't garner any dues on money put into the A Fund.  Find out why the IAH Reps are not happy with the opening R & I position.  Keep asking the tough questions, and don't give in to replacing them with a do-nothing 9-0 MEC.  Our futures, our SCOPE, and our chance at making our Retirement whole is at stake.

Questions and comments  can be addressed to Brett and Sherry at
1-877 -442 -4171.  Press appropriate number for either Brett or Sherry                            

We support Brett and Sherry 100%!

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Our Opinion:

After digesting everything that has happened over the past two weeks, we are in search of just two things, the truth and a strong antacid! We have researched both sides. We are not going to discuss the events which give the impression that our union is imploding. Several members have expressed their dismay over the recent events. Lynch mobs are being formed and the real possibility of a recall of several reps is in the offing. We don't blame the members for their angst. It all boils down to information and facts, and of course, who you want to believe.  Pierce's latest attempt to smear the IAH reps is but one example of a person hell bent in securing his career and not protecting the pilots at CAL. He says we are a stronger MEC because of our differences. No, he is stronger (or so he thinks) because he has used a play from the company play book, divide and conquer. Unity for his future is his idea of unity. Don't be fooled by his talk of being stronger. By his actions and those of his followers, Pierce made us look weak. We can only imagine what the UAL pilots are saying. We always thought the MEC Chairman worked for the LEC reps, not the other way around. It's Jay Pierce's way or he will take his ball and go home. Jay, it's time to go home! Don't forget to take your ball too! Jay Pierce wanted to go to national so bad he could taste it. When asked if he had aspirations for higher office, he said no. He said he wanted to see this JCBA through to the end. Now that the election is over, we are seeing the true Jay Pierce come out of the shadows. He has no intention of representing the CAL pilots. He is only concerned with himself. As was stated below, "Can you imagine Jay Pierce flying the line any time in the future"? We know we can't. Jay Pierce is a liar and a politician. Seems these days, this is the norm for corrupt leadership. Jay Pierce has no place to go. He is what some have called, "a lame duck MEC chairman". The only thing Jay Pierce has to gain now is an office in management. How will he get there? He will have to show the same loyalty to management (Fred Abbott) that Tom Stivala showed during the negotiations of contract 02. This means another contract 02 or perhaps worse. We are hearing that the original R/I proposal written back in December has been gutted by Pierce and the negotiating team. The reps have asked to see this section along with the scope section and others. Why are the reps being kept in the dark?  A mention of "bullet points" was made during the last town hall meeting. The phrase "bullet points" is synonymous with contract 02. Why do you think the reps haven't had a chance to see any information on these sections other than bullet points? What is Jay Pierce hiding from the MEC? Even the ALPA lawyer got in the act, claiming delays in getting the completed agreement to the pilots for a vote if the reps requested to see the final language before the entire contract is complete. What's the rush here?  We want to get the contract right, not another 02! Wouldn't you rather have the reps go over each section individually before they are pressured by Pierce to vote yes for the entire package? Is it possible the contract guts the very foundation of what the pilots asked for in polling data? A request was made by the IAH reps.  Jay Pierce stated that the entire MEC has to make the request. Let's make it happen reps! We dare you to ask for just the scope section. Better yet, how about the members tell their reps to request sections for review?  

For those who have money in the DB plan, you are safe for now (hopefully). Now for the rumor...The original proposal gave those who lost money a chance to make up some of what they lost by the end of their careers. We are hearing that is gone. We wonder why? What's next, trade scope for Jay Pierce's management future? In order for Jay Pierce to get that "corner office" he has no qualms in saving the company the expense of creating a vehicle for regaining what some of us lost in contract 02. He will surely sell scope also. Think contract 02 won't happen again? The Jay Pierce stars are aligned. His trusted companions, Baron, Cook, Person, Introligator, and others are drinking what Jay has to offer. They have started an attack campaign to rid themselves of two reps who are actually asking questions and trying to protect this pilot group. Theses "terrorists" no longer represent our best interests. The all need to resign. Jay Pierce wants to create a unanimous vote of the MEC when the JCBA is complete. He doesn't need the two reps from IAH to send the JCBA to the pilots for ratification. He will, however, have a problem if the IAH reps vote no on the JCBA and give their reasons for their decision. He wants them gone at all costs. Trust us, this is not the end. The IAH reps will continue to fight and ask questions no matter what lies and propaganda Jay Pierce and friends dish out.

Jay Pierce has never worked as a line pilot. He has either been in management at CALEX or a full time position at ALPA national. Does any of this bother you? Does he even know how to fly? Jay Pierce will sell us down the river for his own personal gain. Time to stop this nonsense is now. This is a warning! Recalling the IAH reps will surely create the atmosphere for another contract 02.  We really don't want to go through that again.  We are sure the UAL pilots won't either. Jay Pierce and the rest of your henchmen, please resign for the sake of this pilot group.

Savecalpilots
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Comments from a concerned CAL pilot. Recent events have brought our union to the breaking point. Who is to blame? You be the judge.

As I think about everything that has happened and I wonder why this mess is still being allowed to fester I have to question a couple of things:

1. Can ANYBODY envision Pierce flying the line at any time in the future? I can't and nobody I have talked to on the phone can. Jay Pierce's background backs this thought up....for most of his career, he has either worked full time for management or full time for the Union.

2, For the past several months Pierce has experienced a VERY frustrating situation....two of his strongest Reps (in terms of how many pilots they represent) do not support him. Every night when he goes to bed he has to realize that these Reps control almost 50% of our pilot with their vote.....7-2 doesn't sound like almost 50% but in this case.....it is.....and Pierce knows it. So, at some point he must have decided to eject from the CAL MEC and head for a job with National. He almost got it.....but he didn't.

Now Pierce is back as our MEC Chair as a lame duck. He isn't going to National and he really burned his bridges here at the CAL MEC. If an airline pilot doesn't want to fly the line, he has three choices for his career path....he can work full time for ALPA National, his MEC or he can go to management as Stivala and Martin did. It appears that Pierce's decision to go to ALPA National is no longer a possibility for the time being. His days working full time for our MEC MIGHT be very limited by two Reps and he knows it. The last path is management and one way to get a great management job (as we have seen before) is to push a lousy contract through to this pilot group......one that favors the company.

It is my belief that if one or two Reps had voted "NO!" on the 2002 TA, it would not have passed. Instead, ALL the Reps voted for the TA (9-0) and this carried the day for the worst contract in the airline undustry. Still, Stivala, for his effort and his success, received a plush management job.

Is this what is going on today? I don't know....but it is possible as I review the various scenarios as to WHY this has been allowed to happen. There has to be a reason for this fiasco.

So Pierce has these two very pesky Reps. He knows if the TA gets voted on 7-2 he is going to have some major problems getting it through this pilot group. Management will not be pleased. The solution?.....somehow, some way, get rid of those pesky Reps and maybe get a Pete Schnur in there as the F/O Rep and Bruce Stone in there as the captain Rep or somebody like these two......and life will be good once more.

So, how do you get rid of these two "malcontents?"....Like all politicians, you look for the weak points in your opponent and you chisel away at these weak points. Unfortunately, Brett and Sherry had a huge and glaring weakness....they had left their spouses.....just like Marotta had done but the difference here is that Marotta is a Pierce supporter and the Brett/Sherry team is not.

So, this weak point (although Pierce and others knew about this for months) was exploited and a few other things were thrown into the hat just for frosting....ie, too much drinking at a BOD meeting (never been done before....right?), too much discussion with the UAL Reps (what is a BOD meeting for anyway?).....Flight Pay loss issues (But Lynch, the biggest FTFPL abuser in the history of our Union was invited to the BOD meeting for a week and nothing was said about him!)....for an even greater effect and hopefully to put a lid on this trash can, "let's convince their very own S/T to write a four page long diatribe about how bad these two really are."

After talking to MANY pilots on BOTH sides, I feel that the scenario above is what is REALLY going on here. This is also the reason that Pierce has not stepped in to halt this fiasco.....he NEEDS Brett and Sherry gone....RIGHT NOW! If he cannot embarrass them into resigning, he will use the Union blastmail system to throw out garbage to their constituents for hopefully, a recall. Pierce is even willing to violate Union police (the blastmail from LEC170 to LEC 171 members without approval of the LEC 171 chairman)....this is about as low and ugly as Union politics can get.

Is this situation repairable? I think not. I do not think that Pierce wants this fiasco to be over until Brett and Sherry are gone. He NEEDS a 9-0 MEC vote on the TA to fulfill his personal agenda. He will not get it if Brett and Sherry survive his onslaught.

Anyway....just some points to ponder....this is only my opinion backed up by what we have ALL seen recently. I do not believe that our MEC will move forward until there is a change at the top. No GOOD union leader would allow this to have happened unless it fit into his personal agenda or he simply has no leadership skills. Either fault will hurt out pilot group immensely. We cannot afford this fiasco to continue and getting rid of the IAH Reps is not the answer because yo uMUST ask yourself, "who will replace them?"....I can guarantee that it will be a Pierce supporter (Mike Jones perhaps?)....Is that what we need?

Commentary...

"The BOD debacle"

Recent events within our union are indeed troubling, if not mind boggling. After the BOD elections (and during) tensions were running rather high within our MEC. Seems there were some obscene gestures (flipping the bird and mouthing obscenities) made by LEC 170 Captain rep Jayson Baron to the LEC 171 Captain rep Brett Walker. While Jayson Baron's actions really don’t surprise us, it is what happened after that was alarming. Seems Baron went across the room to pick a fight with Walker, which wound up outside. It was broken up by other MEC officers. We believe this happened twice. How embarrassing for the Continental pilots to have Jayson Baron stoop so low as to pick a fight with a fellow pilot. What was even more embarrassing for Jayson personally was the fact that he didn't follow through with his threats of physical violence. All talk and no action. Does this sound familiar? Just like his representational skills for the EWR pilots. Jayson Baron is a complete disappointment as a rep and a person.

With the election over, other manifestations of hate reared their ugly heads. Seems Captain Prater had some not so kind words (we hear the “F” bomb was used)  to share with Sherry Quekemeyer. Prater was disappointed in is poor showing in the election. We don't blame him for his disappointment, but he brought it on himself. Then we have Jay Pierce. While we could spend pages and pages discussing this individual, we will keep it simple. Jay Pierce had no intention on running for first VP. At least that was what he stated at a recent LEC meeting. Seems he made a last minute (2 weeks before the election) change to his future plans. It included running for first VP so he could move to DC, be closer to his family, and of course collect a hefty pay increase (approx 450K/ year) for the office. The election is history. His defeat was a vote of no confidence (more like a slap on the face) in his abilities as a union rep. Now that the election is over, this narcissist decided to continue to take his frustrations out on the 2 IAH reps because they didn't support his candidacy for first VP. The mud is flying now. He has engaged many union members to discredit these reps from IAH in an effort to perhaps recall them. So much for democracy and free speech. Now Pierce is saying he will not seek re-election for MEC Chairman at CAL. We suggest he save us all the trouble of his immature ranting and resign now. His professionalism is that of a politician, and that's all.

The recent offerings from Pierce and the infamous Magenta line has included personal attacks on these two reps. One of these attacks is from the SEC/Tres of LEC 171 Eric Introligator, otherwise known as “Gator”. We found his rant nothing more than a long winded story which could cause one to commit suicide by lethal injection. Why is he getting so personal? What is the purpose of discrediting a fellow union member and rep? Is he planning a recall? We are hearing that this is precisely what is being planned. How sad the loyalty shown by the IAH reps for doing the right thing for this pilot group is being rewarded by attacks lead by Pierce and his cronies. What is Pierce afraid of? Expressing the wishes of the pilots, along with your own as these gallant IAH reps have done, is the true meaning of proper representation. For their efforts, their personal lives are being brought up. The personal lives of our reps are just that, PERSONAL! When you mix personal with politics, you get a disaster! This type of behavior does not build unity or create trust. This is what Jay Pierce is trying to do. One can only wonder what the UAL pilots are thinking after watching the shenanigans at the BOD meeting and the latest offerings from Pierce and his fellow narcissists.

We recommend Jay Pierce resign immediately. Since he has stated that he cannot work with the IAH reps, his services are no longer needed. Jayson Baron and Tara Cook should also resign. They have done nothing to foster unity at such a pivotal time in our collective careers. “Gator” should also resign for being stupid enough to listen to Jay Pierce, and following his orders. None of these individuals are true representatives of this pilot group. We know these narcissists will not resign. It will take a vote of the MEC to get rid of Pierce. Baron and Cook’s demise will take a special meeting to recall them. All it takes is a few brave souls to speak up and make it happen. If anyone is interested, please contact us at info@savecalpilots.com   


The following comments were made by UAL pilots and one CAL pilot. We all have the same concerns. Will ALPA wake up and smell the coffee, or will they just use pilot apathy to rule the kingdom?

 Just thought I would pass along a line pilot's perspective of the MEC meeting on Thursday. Since I only live an hour away, I decided to travel down to Hollywood and observe our MEC in action. Arrived at the meeting in the morning and was immediately thwarted from entering the meeting as "Closed" signs were on the doors. I was told that SPC Chairman Jim Anderson was giving a presentation to the MEC and they had elected to go "closed". Following his presentation a  Q&A session with the SPC Chairman followed and that meeting was also closed. I was told initially that it would probably only be about 15 minutes but it drug on for most of the morning. I didn't get any specifics about what was being discussed but heard the comment, "very heated debate" several times by members leaving the room. I can only speculate about what was discussed, but obviously some MEC members have some issues with the SPC. Captain Randy Helling (ALPA National) was scheduled to address the MEC in the morning and his briefing was delayed to a later day due to the length of time used for the Q&A with the SPC.

I did manage to make use of the time staring at the "closed" signs by having a conversation with Captain Prater followed by one with Captain Rice. They were both out pressing the flesh prior to next week's ALPA BOD meeting and the upcoming election for President. We talked about FT/DT NPRM, Aer Lingus, and Open Skies. The conversations were pretty generic but it appears that the FT/DT limits will eventually be changed to some form of the NRPM following the comment period. I would venture to guess that flight time limits will increase to 9 hours depending on scheduled report time. Hopefully our new contract will prevent 2 pilot Atlantic crossings or West coast turns.The Aer Lingus issue although it is of concern, hasn't generated any specific battle plan from ALPA National. I guess until this issue affects some of the other carriers such as DAL then it is our problem and not a National problem. All the more reason to make sure that scope protections are included in any future contract. And they must be forward-looking and can't provide the Company with numerous exceptions such as our previous furlough protection and block hour guarantee.

I managed to have a discussion with one of our Joint Negotiators. Obviously they cannot provide any specifics but it appears that progress is still being made. For those of you hoping that the Oct 10 deadline would provide a TA, I wouldn't hold my breath. The Joint Negotiating team is present at the MEC meeting and will be in Hollywood for the BOD meeting as well. UAL and CAL will be conducting meetings between themselves,but it seems to me that any meeting with the company to discuss proposals will be delayed until these meetings have finished up. I am not trying to slight the negotiating team as their presence at these meetings is important. These individuals are putting in a lot of hours on our behalf and I for one would prefer to see a delayed but acceptable contract rather than something that is unacceptable.

The morning MEC session was closed out with a financial briefing that was also "closed" to general membership. This was only the second time that I have attended a MEC meeting, but I found it particularly odd that UAL was the only MEC that was conducting their meeting behind closed doors. DAL,CAL,FedEx, were all meeting in the same general area and never went closed on their MEC meetings. Given the fact that Gene Scanlon attended a previous day and encountered the same thing, it appears that "closed" is now the norm for our MEC. I was going to stay for the afternoon session but was informed by my LEC rep that the afternoon session would be mostly closed also. I ate some lunch with some of the reps and then departed. Wish this could have been more informative, but I guess you will have to see the MEC's official minutes to find out what was discussed.

Name withheld

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"..behind closed doors is an indication of the (United)MEC's confidence in themselves and the implied contract w/ the line pilots which goes to trust. we have a small % of pilots on the extremes of the bell curve. That said, the majority are bright enough to discern and read the tea leaves..I think the message is one of extreme caution on our part and a healthy dose of skepticism. Paul Rice is politiking for ALPA national chair, Prater is a dolt. WTF is with the (lack of )policy/position re. Aer Lingus? Why haven't we heard from Wendy? Just keep paying the dues boys & girls.......it will be milk and honey in no time..."

Name withheld

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Bottom line, what has ALPA done for the pilots of United? Or Continental?  With your answer in mind, could the unionist pilots at United and Continental do any better with a union primarily focused on the careers and expectations of the pilots of United and Continental (UnitedCon)? The financial plight of the typical United line pilot is not entirely of their making. Some have taken better than a 50% hit. Some are sitting at 100% (1700+ and counting)... But your overall message is accurate in my view. The average line pilot mirrors the average working American: over-extended and waiting for the invisible hand of good-fortune to return them to the fantasy of easy living and good times. All this without any thought, effort, or preparedness. Or is it personal responsibility? Either way, the lambs get slaughtered. And we have a lot of lambs..

Name withheld
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Thanks for forwarding the above, 
 
I don't know this gentleman, but I feel at least I'll be in good company as we merge.  When we struggled to get the improvements our 2nd post Lorenzo contract brought (C-'97), most pilots had been on the property at CAL for at least 8-10 years.  Many weren't prepared, but most felt that even if it meant certain financial ruin, that something had to be done to raise QOL above the low point of FARs for work rules and job protection.  We even had the participation of many of the scabs in International Association of Cal Pilots, much of which has been lost since reaffiliation with ALPA.  Frustratingly, many FOs I fly with are 3-4 year people that are still enamored with the travels aspect of the job, just starting families, or still single and a long ways emotionally and financially from where I was at the time I said, "This is going to get better if it costs me everything I own and maybe my career."

A Cal pilot

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I started over a year ago and i quit in the spring... asking questions about strike preparedness... financial, willingness, pdap savings, what guys thought they would do, etc ... i couldn't believe how many guys were willing to admit that they were living from pay check to pay check and that if it came down to it they were going to work ... granted a lot of this is hatred for alpa... for what ever reason ... and i believe there are plenty of reasons for the hatred (personally I believe that ALPA no longer represents the major line pilot... conflicting interest with the regionals ... and a national group that are out of touch with the folks they represent and basically out for their own greed (a lot like congress))
 
PDAP ... interesting correlation... I read an article about a year and a half ago by Bill Davis (c11 r/i guy... really good guy)... the article related as to how few guys were contributing to their PDAP and how fewer guys still were maxing it out since the multi rounds of pay/benefit cuts... this is an indicator that guys are living from pay check to pay check... or beyond their means considering where we are now contract wise... if guys can't contribute to their PDAP they certainly can't set anything aside for a strike fund... the company sees this and knows that guys will cross (remember my warnings on Doug McKeen... history is to lead companies through strikes) When I saw Bill in OPS I expressed my concerns over the underlying implications of his article... he agreed and said that is exactly what he was trying to get across... guys need to get their financial house in order... Gordo sent out a similar message over a year ago... personally I believe it is too late for most guys... if your house is not in order now you probably don't have enough time
 
My house is in order so i will have a choice... wait out the strike, retire, or scab just for sport

Name witheld

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Magenta Line... "another attempt to divide and conquer"

An Editorial:

The most recent "Magenta Line" was written in part as an attack on their fellow reps. Jayson Baron and Tara Cook  portray themselves as an honest hard working representatives by attacking the trip loss of other reps when it comes to bidding for the upcoming ALPA BOD meeting this month. PBS is not a perfect system. We all know that. Our union reps have the ability to pre block days for union work so as to not cost the union even more money to operate. Even Jay Pierce told the reps to not pre block their days for union business. Is this true? Seems all information is pointing that direction. These reps were only doing what they are allowed to do, and told to do. How can the EWR reps be "dismayed, disappointed and embarrassed" by these reps bid? Seems Jayson and Tara like to do the same thing on the sly. Jayson and Tara both had trips bought after a recent MEC meeting. Seems at least Baron could very easily have flown his assigned trip the following evening. Instead, he stepped up to the union trough and had his trip bought at the conclusion of that meeting. There was no valid reason except for a conference call that Baron was to participate in the next day. For this he had a three day trip bought for perhaps 45 minutes of union work? That seems fair, doesn't it? Captain Baron is not as lily white as he makes himself out to be. Baron said, "We hate it when management drives their Mack trucks through “loopholes”- we don’t need to be doing it to ourselves!" Jayson tried to do the same thing before he was elected. What's that phrase, "pot calling the kettle black"?  Now Captain Baron decides to bring out this little gem to what end? Are you trying to build unity Captain Baron? Or are you trying desperately to, as you said, " create an atmosphere conducive to divide and conquer tactics"? Just because some reps disagree with you doesn't mean you have the right to attack them for their trip loss. You stated that certain interpretations of the trip loss policy did damage to the relationship of this pilot group with its MEC in the past. What are you trying to accomplish now, stronger unity? Is this merely a deflection of your own shortcomings as a rep? We suggest you keep your eyes on the prize and stop with the divide and conquer techniques of the past you seem to abhor from management.

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Now that we are officially merged, I still find it difficult to feel good about this merger. I hear very little from the union (other than the weekly update). I am hearing rumors of the UAL pilots demanding the top 400 slots on the seniority list so they can keep the Continental Pilots from flying the B747-400. Believe it or not, this was supposed to be a merger of equals, or so I thought. What nerve! Now that the UAL pilots have drawn their line in the sand, how will our union react? If this is truely a "merger of equals", I guess we are really going to see the fur start to fly! If anyone tells you that labor is on board, tell them they are full of it.

I want to thank this website for displaying information for the CAL pilots!


JAY PIERCE, CALALPA MEC CHAIRMAN: HIS ANTI-UNION PAST IS REVEALED!

The following comments came from a Continental pilot. This story is very telling about our current MEC chairman.
You decide for yourself. The name of the pilot has been withheld.

Take it for what it is worth. I never heard this story until said head of the training dept was appointed MEC Chairman at CALALPA. I mentioned his appointment to my wife (who has been out of the CAL/Calex family since 08/01) and she asked if it was the same person who was at Express. You could imagine my jaw hitting the floor when she told me the story. Her jaw did the same when she realized that this same person was now the head of our union. Just doesn't make sense. Many of you may recall my distrust of said topic of discussion. This instance bolstered what issues I already had.
I believe, however, that the stars, planets, and moons are all aligned. Our leverage has never been better. I am betting that management has their eyes on the payout and will be more willing to acquiesce rather than jeopardize the hefty bonuses they will enjoy with a successful merger. On the same token, I believe that said topic of discussion wants to take advantage of this unique moment to catapult himself into grandeur. He has teetered on the fence between
management and Alpa National, daring not to rock either boat, waiting for the opportunity to present itself to make the decision on which way to jump. I feel that he now realizes that the Alpa national route is the more attainable endeavor and that he will use this merger/JCBA to stake his claim as to why he should be National Chairman. If the JCBA is great...he will get it. Presidential appointments to transportation depts will soon follow. Politics alive and well. This merger has forced his hand and to grab the pot he has to deliver on our (including United...he needs us both) behalf. If my theory is correct, he is now my best fnend, he has to produce results. If he chooses the contrary and delivers another C'02, he will have to enjoy the same feeling of not being able to look at himself in the face as he shaves in the morning (aka Stivala). Politicians...never trust them, but sometimes they hold  the key to your success. We shall see. Even if he does deliver the mother load...I will never trust him.
Time will tell.

This MEC chairman is going to decide our collective futures in this merger with UAL. Who is he really working for, ALPA or the company?  This so called trade, unionist,  statesman, opportunist is not working for us!
 He needs to be relieved of his command!
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Comment about Jay Pierce:

I cannot believe what I just read about Jay Pierce's "management comment" to a CALEX pilot! Who does this guy think he is?  How can we as Continental pilots be so gullible when it comes to who represents us? One thing I know for sure, Jay Pierce needs to either resign, or be recalled. Will the MEC have the fortitude to recall Jay Pierce? Unfortunately, I have sat by the sidelines long enough. I have come to realize that even though I only have one vote, I can still help make changes. Our pilots group is being represented by the vocal minority from the union. I do know one thing, I have learned more in the last couple of days about how our union works when the union forum started, when the union forum closed, and the comments made on Calforums just recently. I suggest those in the LEC 170 attend the meeting on the 9th of September. It's time to get the answers to the tough questions. If not, it's time for a recall, or change to a union that will represent us!

Name witheld by request

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A letter written several months before the merger was announced:

The urge to merge has reached epidemic levels with the CAL ALPA MEC. It’s not a matter of if or when we merge for our MEC but how they can accommodate Larry and the UAL pilots.  All this started with the sudden and questionable election of Jay Pierce.   Jay comes from management back ground and worked on the language of CO02 and took part in the misleading sales job of CO02.  That is not what we need going into a merger.  Include the deceptive behavior of our current and past MEC and we are in big trouble.

Jay and our MEC apparently have a plan to ask the company for a messily 15% raise and a few other worthless items in order for us to agree to a merger.  Our union seems to always forget they represent us rather than manage us.  They beat us over the head with all these polls they insisted we take over the past few months.   Meanwhile in Chicago news reports are coming out that UAL has their war paint on and will accept no merger until their demands are met. Our MEC chairmen Jay Pierce said he wants to talk with UAL and sent Chris Dowell to Chicago on behalf of all of us.  In a town hall meeting on February 22 Jay Pierce said he is talking only to get information and information is the key.  Isn’t that what they told us about the partnership accord leading up to CO02?  We all saw how that information turned out in CO02 now it’s happening again.  I think it’s clear that our pilot group does not want to talk or merge with UAL but Jay Pierce is calling the shots without our approval or input.  Make no mistake they are negotiating a deal at the insistence of their partners in management and ALPA.   We the pilots are the odd man out as they keep us in the dark and decide what is best for us.

One caller to the town hall meeting made a great point when he said we should only accept parts of UAL and not agree to a merger as we apparently are.  He went on to say had UAL been in our shoes that are how they would treat us and he is right. Do we know anything as to how they would merge our seniority list?   Did any of us agree to this 15% raise to merge, which could end up putting many of us on the street? Why aren’t we a part of any of these discussions?  Don’t believe any of that BS with regard to the SEC or RLA.  They can and should be talking to us and not talking to UAL without our approval.

We are truly the stronger carrier and UAL needs us and soon. We are merging not out of necessity but by strategic circumstance.  The UAL MEC continues their arrogance and our MEC continues their stupidity. Listening to Pierce and our MEC, you would think we were the weak carrier and need a merger to survive as all the others do. 

The one issue that scares many of our junior pilots is seniority. The last pilot hired at UAL was August of 2001.  We started our hiring in 2005 and added some 1500 pilots.
Again we are the stronger airline and many of our pilots would and did choose CAL over UAL. That is why our union needs to use career expectations as a guideline and direction for our merger committee.  Career expectations are the key for a successful merger for our pilot group and especially the junior pilots.  There is a myth floating around that relative seniority will help the junior pilots and that is false.
The union is in denial about what consolidation means. It means Consolidation plain and simple.  Keller was quoted on CNBC on February 21st saying we would pull out of markets and routes should we merge and so would UAL. The other key is our work rules and again our union thinks we will assume the UAL work rules and that will not happen.   Keller is popular on Wall Street for his cost cutting ability.  We are the key to his success in cost cutting along with our rules and PBS.

Keller is selling our work rules all over Wall Street as a way to merge and make the two companies profitable.  These Wall Street types want a return on their money and are not going to take a chance on an airline merger that will continue losses in the billions. You can rest assure that the UAL model is already in the trash. We are sold as a happy group that loves to fly 90-hour months and it shows.  Our version of PBS is rumored to cut out between 600-900 pilots at UAL.   There are overlapping routes and markets that will be eliminated by both carriers. PBS is more then a system and it covertly encompasses many work rules eliminating choice seniority and a life that is why you can be sure it will survive the merger.  Our union is delusional.

Speaking of relative seniority, if you are 80% at the time of the merger you might end up 90% or worse after consolidation, which happens months after the seniority lists are merged.  Or if you are a junior Captain you could theoretically get furloughed with relative seniority. We need to protect our pilots with career expectations and date of hire and not relative seniority.  There will be furloughs and it will be well over a thousand pilots.  Relative seniority will not protect our junior pilots but career expectations will.
Remember it’s the UAL model that is broke and they have the fat that needs to be trimmed not us.  We got our trimming in CO02.
So be careful what you wish for in a merger.  Relative seniority is vague and subjective and we have no idea how that would work out after consolidation.

Jay Pierce and our union are embarking on the most dangerous journey of our careers. They have the audacity to tell us trust them and don’t ask questions about a merger.  Our union has lost our trust years ago and they have done nothing to earn it back.  We have been overwhelmed with trip loss issues, which cost us millions.  Then our union beat us over the head with CO02 filled with have truth and out and out false statements.  Now our union is going to finish us off with a merger and lock us into CO02 for years to come.  Once we have a merger agreement CO02 will be DOA and the merger agreement will be our CBA. The merger agreement will also be final and there will be on recourse as we see with the USAIR merger.  Don’t let that happen to us again!  Get involved now.

Unknown


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"Finally, I wanted to tell you that I have been asked to testify before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure’s Subcommittee on Aviation regarding the proposed Continental – United Merger and the possible effects for consumers and industry on June 16th 2010. I am excited to accept the invitation and look forward offering the labor, and specifically pilot labor, perspective on this merger."

A response from a line pilot...

Jay,
I'm pleased and excited for you (not really). I can only imagine what you will tell this subcommittee. Will this be a fact based effort on your part?  Since when did you become an expert on the possible effects for consumers and the industry? Will you come armed with ALPA's agenda? Will you have an ALPA attorney behind you whispering in your ear? Will you tell them you are for or against the merger? Will you explain that we Continental pilots have endured an inordinate amount of pain and suffering at the hands of our company, and our union? Will you explain how you wrote portions of contract 02, a contract that will no doubt go down in history as the worst contract ever? Will you tell the subcommittee how you left Continental to pursue a management position with an upstart airline, and then came back to Continental begging for your job and reinstatement of your seniority number? Will you tell them you are beholding to management for doing this for you? Will you tell them you will do anything for the company to help this merger go through? Will you tell these politicians that the combined carrier will surely furlough pilots when they get rid of the inefficient aircraft, such as the B747-400? Will you tell them how ALPA gave away a portion of pilot pensions in order to help Continental "survive" long enough to merge with UAL? Will you tell them how Continental has been allegedly short changing retired pilot’s pensions until they are caught? On a personal level, will you tell them that you would rather work at ALPA National than actually fly airplanes? I'm sorry Jay, you don't speak for me! Tell you what, instead of you spreading the ALPA agenda, why don't you have a regular line pilot testify for the pilot group? Why not take one along with you? I'm sure a plain and simple line pilot could give an accurate portrayal of the effects on the industry, and of course what this merger will do, specifically to the pilot labor perspective. Better yet, please stay at home. You've done enough damage for a lifetime of labor.

Name Withheld

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A letter from a concerned Continental Pilot

It is very disconcerting to see the lack of unity this pilot group is exhibiting. You speak to a senior pilot and he says “FUPM” but at the expense of the junior pilot. You speak to a junior pilot and he says “FUPM” at the expense of the senior pilot. Have we not learned anything from the history of our previous contract negotiations? If we stand divided, we will fail as we have in 2002. If we stand UNITED, we will persevere. We cannot ignore the concerns of any of our brothers and sisters as they are all valid. We cannot be so shortsighted as to only focus or care about what part of the contract negotiations apply to us. We have to UNITE to get a favorable outcome…whether it is about pension protection, scope, or furloughs; all these issues have to be addressed. Management can “smell” our weaknesses and will do everything in their power to pin us against each other during these uncertain times.  Our CEO has already implied that we can be walked over, let’s prove him wrong. He thinks his offer for Delta’s contract is fair. He believes contract 2002 was fair. He thinks that once the merger is complete, he can take advantage of United’s lack of scope and bring 70 seat RJ’s on site and take our futures away from us. Let’s send him a clear message. We are the pilots of Continental Airlines and we will stand UNITED. We will have our cake and eat it too. We will not accept a mediocre contract. We will not do what’s only good for a certain group/seniority but rather do what’s good for all of us as a whole. We will not give up the only portion of our contract that is industry leading (scope). We will see payback for all the sacrifices we have made in the last eight years. Most importantly, we will not take NO for an answer. There are trying times ahead my fellow pilots. The company will do everything in its power to make us falter; I only hope that these tactics will only make our will to persevere stronger and our voices louder to a point where management can no longer ignore us. We are the backbone of Continental Airlines and we can have an enormous effect on day to day operations. First and utmost, we have to maintain our professionalism for our passengers and we have to keep their satisfaction our top priority. During contract 1997 negotiations, our union printed a “heads up” checklist. It was a list of procedures and rules that are outlined in our FOM. Following these procedures had a very surprising effect on the fluidity of our day to day operations. However the effect may have been, the cause was following the procedures outlined in our FOM and Flight Manual to a “T”. Why our union has not come up with a similar approach is beyond me. Why our union has not come out with a full page ad in a national newspaper expressing our outrage over what our CEO proposed during his merger brief to the media is also beyond me. They tell us they are fighting for us to our faces, but I have yet to see them fighting. I am done with all the pep talks and I want action. They are “our” representatives and they need to start doing more. They need to make our voices heard before it’s too late. My brothers and sisters, the time has come to say enough is enough. Will you be a part of the solution and UNITE with your fellow pilots to better “OUR” future or will you sit on the sideline and watch helplessly as management decimates “OUR” careers!

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Another letter:

If you wait, you have lost an opportunity of creating any type of leverage to enhance the lives of Continental Pilots right now. This deal will not be completed for 18 months probably at best… With that said, why should we as Continental not be able to enhance our lives and lifestyles at the front end? We can only hope that our leadership has been talking with management and  pressing the issue that if we don’t see some immediate improvement in PBS Scheduling, easing of work rules, increases in compensation and benefits and a chunk of the new company as good faith then we are willing to let the world know of our displeasure. Wall Street as you well know dislikes labor unrest and now is the time to show that unrest is a very good possibility if the above mentioned items are not taken care of before the financing is in place otherwise it is too late. Nobody wants to see an AW/USA scenario but that could very well happen and too prevent that from happening Continental management needs to step up to the table if they want our cooperation as Continental Pilots.
 
Our leadership needs to put  their political aspirations on the back burner and start looking out for Continental Pilots first and foremost while we are still Continental pilots. With the betrayals that have happened in the past for personal gain, does the name John Prater ring a bell? I don’t really have a lot of faith in the officers of the MEC.. two in particular, to press the needs of the Continental Pilots right now. Especially when two of them were intimately involved in trying to give out scope away. JV LOA ring a bell? Anyway, I could go on, I hope I am wrong but I am not getting a big warm and fuzzy over this after reading the following…...

DOES BOHICA MEAN ANYTHING?
 
Chief Executive Jeff Smisek said Monday that labor support is not a condition of closing a $3.15 billion merger deal with United Airlines. "Absolutely not," Smisek said, on a conference call with analysts. "Our pilots and United's pilots have done a lot of work over the past two years," Smisek said. "They have negotiated a process agreement as they go forward for integrating their seniority, but as I said earlier, I expect that our labor negotiations will be no different from the labor negotiations that we've had at Continental historically." Continental and United announced earlier Monday the merger deal, expected to close by year's end.
 
This tells me that Pierce has already given up the farm and started his move to the city. If that was not the case then we would have had a deal today regarding the improvements listed above and Pierce’s message would have stated that our goals had been met in protecting Continental Pilots instead of the POST MERGER GOALS he put forth.
So that is it in a nut shell, another opportunity… I can only hope I am wrong.
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A Letter to the EWR reps from a pilot:

Lady and Gentlemen as you discuss the current events please remember there are certain things that are out of our control but out of that chaos we can create leverage. Has anybody discussed the fact that the pilots of Continental may be opposed to the combining of the two Airlines? The reason I ask is that we are in the process of creating a unity day in EWR what better way to demonstrate that we are opposed to any merger at this time until the company take care of it’s own first meaning us the line pilots. We don’t have to come out in favor of this merger until the company has improved our lot in life. The current situation is a win/ win for United pilots they stand to gain in pay, benefits and stability, and perhaps seniority as Continental pilots maintain a status quo. This is unacceptable
 
WE DO NOT ALWAYS NEED TO BE WORRIED WITH FIXING MANAGEMENTS PROBLEMS OVER OUR’S. Let’s get out of crisis management mode and try to figure out how to create leverage for the Continental Pilot. It appears at times we are more worried with the company than our own pilots sometimes. I believe a well placed message to management that Continental pilots will bring this carrier to a halt will only strengthen our chances of attaining some improvement. Besides the worse that can happen is we here NO. Anything would be better than being led down the road to slaughter.

On another issue… I have had the opportunity to discuss with some of the MEC Reps on how they are proceeding, quite simply put they are proceeding down  the road of Time of Service. Meaning if a person was or is furloughed, his seniority when he comes back would be would adjusted for time on furlough. Meaning a 2000 hire furloughed for 3 years would come back as a 2003 hire. Simple yet effective in dealing with the many problems facing us. I ‘m sure that you have thought about this but something else that should work in our favor is the pilot to aircraft ratio. I can’t remember of the top of my head but I believe they staff ¾ greater than we do. That could be used to say that we would need more pilots or more likely  they would need less …meaning more United furloughs
 
I know these are difficult times and there is a lot on your plates but please remember we are Continental Pilots for the next 2 years at least even if the merger is announced tomorrow. There is time to protest the treatment by the company create the leverage that will benefit Continental pilots first and foremost. Trust me when I say this… the United Pilots are doing the same thing (looking out for their own) and they stand to make out in this merger from day one in the form of pay, benefits and stability.
 
In closing please let me state that there is time to unify with United pilots after we create leverage and to protect and improve the lot of the Continental Pilots first.
 
Thanks for taking the time to read this.
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Does anyone know why both Continental stock and UAL stock took a dive today? Could it be that our chairman made an irresponsible statement regarding not needing labor, especially the pilots to make this merger work?  Always remember, ninty nine point nine percent of the time the first words out of your mouth are true. He can take back the words, but the meaning is the same. It's apparent our CEO could care less whether we get a fair shake in this merger or not. Seems Wall street is paying attention. They also have a memory like an elephant!
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Editorial:

Words from our union...

"However, we have been able to complete work on a protocol agreement that will aid in the processes surrounding the negotiation and ratification of a joint collective bargaining agreement and the integration of the seniority lists."

How long has this protocol agreement been around? We understand it was completed weeks, if not months ago. It was completed in plenty of time for a merger. How convenient. We are wondering if we, the pilot group might see this protocol agreement. Jay has been burning the midnight oil with Wendy over at UAL. Many trips to New York to meet her, we understand. None of the reps knew where Pierce was. This sounds like another meeting at Starbucks! This thing (merger) sounds like it's been in the works for years. (Actually, it has...five years to be exact). I'll bet we end up being stapled to the bottom of the UAL list...it happened at TWA, thanks to ALPA!

 "Input from our pilots is critical to the success of this process, so we encourage you to participate in the Town Hall meetings and conference calls, local council meetings and union events to the extent possible. Talk with P2P volunteers and contact your local council representatives to make your opinions known."

We agree. However, how much input will our MEC take from this pilot group? They never needed our input before. They just make the decisions for us. How about that ERW? Did it save any jobs? How about that RFL? Did this save jobs? We dropped the LPA from 74 hours to 72. This was a cut in pay. We understand there was one rep that didn't know he was voting to change the LPA!  Hello!  Did you bother to read it before you voted on it? Did the pilots get to vote on this significant cut in pay? No.  We have a resolution which states the pilot group must vote on a significant pay change. So much for resolutions. Just like the one passed to tell the pilot group the costing of contract 02. There were arguments as to what constituted a "significant pay change". It was never established, so they rammed it down our throats without the consent of the pilot group. By all means, contact your P2P volunteers. Let them know what you want....better yet, go in the corner and talk to yourself. You'll get the same result! Yes, these are harsh words. Then again, we've been down this road before!