January 12, 2015
Mr. Robert Isom
Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer American Airlines Group
4333 Amon Carter Boulevard, MD 5608
Fort Worth, TX 76155
Dear Mr. Isom:
This letter is prompted, initially, by your Christmas Eve call to me announcing that American has the money in its coffers to grant a 4% wage increase to its employees; but not to the TWU represented employees. I am not sure how you expected me to react to this.
The refusal of American to include the TWU represented classes or crafts in the 4% increase is unreasonable. It rests entirely on the circumstance that there are no difficult class or craft issues being worked out by the NMB on the crafts to which the 4% is being awarded. In contrast, in the variety of classes or crafts represented by TWU, there are a host of such issues. Is it really your intention to discriminate among your employees on the basis of whether the history of the two airlines — American and US Airways — requires that the NMB investigate and determine technical class or craft issues? Did flight attendants earn this 4% by having an easily defined class or craft? I think you know that making the distinction on this basis is bound to be perceived by TWU members as a Christmas slap in the face.
The 4% increase is justified and unambiguously called for by the years of sacrifice by American employees, culminating in the bankruptcy years. TWU’s members experience the discriminatory wage increase as a refusal to honor their sacrifices in the same way and to the same extent that the sacrifices of other groups are being recognized. Since the 4% is being bestowed outside of, and above and beyond, the gains set out by the new collectively bargained agreements, our members and their union can see no rationale for American’s refusal to include TWU members in on the increase. Moreover, it is TWU’s feeling that while the earlier certified unions were able to negotiate in a fashion customary in professional labor relations, your saving the extra-contractual 4% as a reward to be bestowed only upon successful conclusion of an agreement will place a whole different and unfair set of pressures on TWU, which will distort the negotiating process, and make it difficult to approach the other issues that must be dealt with: job security, including especially the outsourcing of substantial work in major cities and health care costs, just to begin the list. Failure to deal with these issues inevitably undermines the trust and loyalty which American naturally seeks from the employees who are essential to the airline’s success.
As you can see, these are critical matters that we are discussing. I look to you to define the tenor of the coming era of labor relations at American under your tenure by addressing them.
Hoping that you will see the importance of promptly dealing with TWU in these vital matters, I look forward to direct discussions with you regarding them.
Fraternally,
Harry Lombardo
International President