Transport Workers Union Local 514 » TWU-ATD

The Bankruptcy Proof of Claim is NOT Due Until July 16, 2012

Al Ball — Tue, 22 May 2012 20:55:36 +0000

DO NOT PANIC!

All employees at American Airlines and American Eagle reportedly received a Proof of Claim form. This is standard in most large bankruptcy cases.

These claim forms may be used by employees who believe that AA or AE owes money for certain pre-petition claims (those that arose before November 29, 2011).

If you received one of these forms DO NOT PANIC. TWU will be sending out more information about the claims process. Please be patient, information will be available soon!

AMR Bankruptcy Update From President James C. Little

Al Ball — Mon, 21 May 2012 23:37:01 +0000

Brothers and Sisters,

No one ever said this would be easy. The bankruptcy process is complicated. Making matters worse, the bankruptcy laws are designed to protect assets and not people. In this letter, let me bring you up to date on our continuing efforts to fight back and protect all TWU members at American Airlines.

Our goal, from the start, has been to fight smart and to not get boxed into a corner. Even before bankruptcy was declared, we lined-up top bankruptcy lawyers, economists and investment bankers. In November, the minute bankruptcy was announced we had a plan in place. Our lawyers acted immediately on our behalf. Our bankruptcy website, text messages and special emails lit up your screens. We responded to the company’s announcement through demonstrations and media outreach. You may remember our attack on American Airlines (AMR) $30 million dollar London home as just one example.

Earlier this year, we made some progress when we were able to pressure the company, with major help from the PBGC, into freezing rather than terminating our pensions. Through long and difficult negotiations, and by knowing the company better than AMR’s outside advisors, we also were able to reduce the number of jobs to be cut and we succeeded at chipping away at many concessions. Despite these gains, we’re not fooling ourselves; we know that we’re playing against a stacked deck in a painful and unfair process.

I think we’ve done a good job creating options for our members and keeping the company on the defensive. The company lost their unforgiving grip on our futures, when in a surprise move, we announced our support, along with APA and APFA, for a merger with US Airways. The terms we had reached with US Airways put pressure on the company to further change their offer.

Last week, we entered yet another round. Five of our seven bargaining units voted to accept the company’s last offer. Our lawyers announced to the judge that the offers our members accepted serve as a “floor.” Going forward, any overall improvements that can be gained through judge assisted mediation extends to TWU members through the “me too” clauses (that were included in the last offers voted in last week). The “me too” clauses pertain to any potential gains achieved by APA or APFA as well as any gains any TWU represented unit achieves.

Beginning next week, we will enter into 1113 litigation settlement mediation with the company. Judge Sean Lane in an unprecedented move enrolled the assistance of another federal bankruptcy judge, James M. Peck. This court assisted process will be for both our members who rejected the company’s offers so we can try to obtain for them an equitable and ratifiable contract, and for the units that voted “yes,” in order to enforce their “me too” clauses. Judge Lane also moved the court deadline with approval of the debtors from June 6 to June 22.

We have other rounds ahead of us. And, again, we don’t want be boxed into a corner and we want to keep quickly moving along multiple paths that aren’t always predictable. We need to keep our opponents off guard.

The federal bankruptcy judge, James M. Peck who volunteered to assist in this Section 1113 settlement process, has no involvement in the case itself. He is neutral. He also has a full caseload, so scheduling this process is challenging. The pilots and flight attendant unions precede us in these informal mediation steps. In preparation for our turn, we will meet next week in DFW with the leaders of our negotiating teams for all of our titles.

As you can see, this fight is far from over. I want you to know that I will not sign nor move for court approval of the five tentative agreements until the process is complete. After all, that is why our TWU lawyers negotiated these “me too” clauses in the Fleet, GSI, Dispatch, MCT and Sim Tech offers.

We will redouble our efforts on behalf of all of our members and continue to vigorously litigate the Section 1113 case on their behalf. Our fight to obtain better offers must be stronger than ever.

I cannot emphasize enough that if we’re going to prevail it’s important that we remain unified and together through this union. Any division in our ranks only empowers our opponents. Without question, there is strength through unity.
In solidarity,

James C. Little,
International President
Transport Workers Union of America, AFL-CIO

What’s Next?

Al Ball — Wed, 16 May 2012 21:25:22 +0000

AS TO THOSE UNITS THAT VOTED YES TO ACCEPT THE LAST OFFER:

Q. When does the offer actually go into effect?

A. First, the court has to ultimately approve the five agreements. This is certainly expected to happen, but there is no time set for this to occur. Second, TWU and AA have an understanding that the new agreements, even after court approval, will not go into effect until all the other union labor groups, (including M&R and Stores,) have resolved their 1113 bankruptcy asks. The groups that voted yes will not have to experience the concessions until all contract groups have completed their 1113 process, either by ratifying a deal or by having their contract rejected. All groups will be treated equally as to the start time of any concessions.

Q. What happens if another group gets a better overall ask than the one to which our bargaining unit agreed?

A. Through the “me-too” clause contained in the ratified contracts as well as pursuant to the understanding we have with AA, each group who voted yes will receive the same percentage reduction in their total give back amount as does any other bargaining group. However, AA maintains that all groups must still meet their full ask amounts.

Q. While we await the outcome of the 1113 process for the remaining bargaining units, what working conditions and terms do we work under?

A. We will still operate under the current existing TWU contract that we have been working under for years. There is no change in the status quo.

Q. When will the 1113 process be completed?

A. While the court has announced it will issue a ruling in early June, there is no way to actually know when the judge will issue a final order with regard to AA’s 1113 motion to reject and cancel the contracts as to the other contract groups.

Q. Does our yes vote affect the pursuit of a possible US Airways merger by TWU and the other unions?

A. No, we remain very supportive of this possible merger.

Q. Will our TWU lawyers still present a case in bankruptcy court regarding the five units that voted yes?

A. No. By ratifying the last ask, each of those units ended the risk of the judge canceling their contract. New successor agreements have been tentatively reached awaiting court approval.

FOR THE TWO GROUPS THAT VOTED NO AND REJECTED THE LAST OFFER:

Q. Are the TWU lawyers still presenting the union case contesting AA’s 1113 motion to reject the M&R and Stores collective bargaining agreements?

A. Yes.

Q. When will the judge issue his final ruling on AA’s 1113 motion to reject our two contracts?

A. While the court indicated that its ruling is due in early June, there is no way to know exactly when the decision will issue.

Q. Will there be additional 1113 negotiations between TWU and AA before the judge rules on the motion seeking to reject our two contracts?

A. The judge has consistently encouraged all parties to negotiate and reach a consensual deal. He has even offered to have another judge informally assist the lawyers in the talks. The pilots and flight attendants have been in talks over the last week and are in front of us at this time. We anticipate that there will be more court settlement talks.

Q. If no settlement agreement is reached, what happens next?

A. We await the judge’s final ruling on the 1113 motion to reject the two CBA’s.

Q. If the judge does in fact reject our contracts, what terms will we then work under?

A. The terms of the AA March 22 1113 term sheet filed in court. (That term sheet does not include raises, the 401k match, profit sharing and other items including the return of pre-funding company contributions, if such is approved by the court).

Q. While the 1113 process keeps unfolding, are we still pursing the possible US Airways merger?

A. Yes, we are operating on multiple tracks and are very supportive of that possible merger.

Last Best Offer Vote Results: 5-15-2012

Al Ball — Tue, 15 May 2012 14:59:33 +0000

Five Out of Seven TWU Bargaining Units Vote to Accept American Airlines’ Last Offer

TWU’s Lawyers Continue to Argue on Behalf of All Members in NYC Bankruptcy Court Today While Union Leadership Promotes Merger with US Airways as Best Option for American Airlines, its Customers, and Employees

NEW YORK– Election results were released this morning for seven separate work groups at American Airlines represented by the Transport Workers Union of America (TWU). Five bargaining units, representing Fleet Service Clerks, Dispatchers, Ground School Instructors, Maintenance Control Technicians, and Simulator Technicians voted “Yes” — meanwhile Aircraft Maintenance and Related workers along with Stores Clerks voted to reject the terms in the company’s last offer. Each bargaining unit’s vote is binding on the workers in that specific contract group.

Voting was conducted by Internet and telephone balloting and certified by the firm BallotPoint Election Services. TWU members began voting Thursday on a last offer from the bankrupt airline’s management. Voting concluded at midnight Central Time Monday.

Fifty-nine percent of Fleet Service Clerks (3,872 to 2,722) voted to accept management’s last offer; along with 92 percent of Dispatchers (134 to 12); 96 percent of Ground School Instructors (126 to 5); 84 percent of Maintenance Control Technicians (72 to 14); and 85 percent of Simulator Technicians (53 to 9) voted “yes.” With these approvals the TWU leadership will next seek court approval of these five successor contracts.

Stores clerks voted “no” in a close vote (521 to 495) with 51 percent opposed; and the union’s Maintenance and Related bargaining unit voted down the company’s last offer with 56 percent opposed (5,307 to 4,179).

The American Airlines’ offer being considered was an improvement over the Section 1113 term sheets filed by management in bankruptcy court in March. American Airlines’ lawyers at that time had called for the judge to approve dramatic changes in working conditions and the elimination of 9,000 TWU members’ jobs. Despite three months of negotiations, no tentative agreement was reached between American and the union prior to the vote. The TWU leadership put the last offers to a vote for each of its seven bargaining units.

The company’s last offer reduced job losses for the two largest TWU work groups. The jobs to be saved in the last offer versus the March court filed term sheets were 1,960 for Maintenance and Related positions (700 through reclassification) and 1,300 for the Fleet Service Clerks. The last offers that were approved contain early out provisions, future raises, and other items.

TWU’s International President James C. Little promised members that they would have the right to vote on a tentative agreement or the company’s final offer. “Our goal from the start has been to create options for our members and to give our members a voice in the bankruptcy process,” said Little. “The bankruptcy courts are designed to protect assets not people. Some of our members found the company’s last offer to be a safer bet than waiting on the court to make a decision. The members in bargaining units that voted ‘no’ thought the proposals were not in their best interests. We respect our members decision regardless of how they voted.”

The bargaining units that voted to accept the company’s offer will not see any changes to their employment status, wages or working conditions until after the court rules on American Airlines’ Section 1113 motion to break labor agreements or, in the alternative, those bargaining units reach a consensual deal. The TWU groups that voted yes also received “me too ” protection, and as a result will get the same financial benefit that any other union groups receive from a reduction of the total concession sought by the airline. That court ruling on the issue of rejecting the labor contracts is expected on or after June 6. American Airlines is seeking $1.25 billion in cuts from all of its workers.

Labor unions representing workers at American Airlines, including TWU, are presenting their Section 1113 case in bankruptcy court this week in New York City.

TWU, along with the two other unions representing workers at American Airlines, the Association of Professional Flight Attendants (APFA), and the Airline Pilots Association (APA), are supporting a potential merger between US Airways and American Airlines. Terms reached between TWU and US Airways are on a separate track from either the vote on American’s last offer or any decision from the federal bankruptcy court in New York City. A merger with US Airways would save roughly 1,000 additional jobs for TWU members over what was in American’s last offers, maintain ground operations in 30 cities with staffing by TWU represented ground workers and provide protections for American Airlines’ Tulsa maintenance facility, along with other improvements.

Recently, after pressure from TWU and other creditors, American Airlines agreed to consider a possible merger before exiting the bankruptcy process.

The Transport Workers Union of America (TWU) represents 200,000 workers and retirees, primarily in commercial aviation, public transportation and passenger railroads, including 26,000 workers at American Airlines and America Eagle. TWU represents more workers at AMR than any other labor organization. The union is an affiliate of the AFL-CIO.

Voting Has Started – AA’s “Last, Best and Final”

Al Ball — Sat, 12 May 2012 18:25:32 +0000

Brothers and Sisters,

The voting has begun on the company’s “last, best and final offer.” Just one day into the vote, members were calling in confused and asking questions about American’s LBO. There is misinformation being generated on blog sites, social networking pages, and a few local web sites. Get the facts.

Read the full text language posted at: www.twubkfacts.org. On Friday, the company posted an updated Q and A on Jetnet. Please review all the available information before you vote.

Remember: You may vote as many times as you like, using either the telephone or Internet, only your last vote will be counted in the tally*. Whichever way you decide to vote, that is your decision and your decision alone. Above all else, please take the time to vote.

Polling Times
Polls Opened: 12:01 AM CT, Thursday May 10, 2012
Polls Close at 11:59 PM CT*, Monday night, May 14, 2012

You should have received a voting information packet by U.S. mail this week. If you have not, you can still vote, but contact the ATD Help Desk immediately at: 817-282-2544. Our TWU staff is available at that number through this weekend and Monday, from 8:30am – 4:30pm (central daylight time.)

Only questions about voting problems should be emailed to: vote@twu.org

Remember – to vote by telephone, call toll-free: 1-866-898-2831, or vote via the Internet at: https://www.BallotPoint.com/TWUATD

Fraternally,

TWU Communications
IT Department