This week, TWU-IAM Association representatives continued the process of reviewing tentatively agreed to Joint Contract language. Late Friday evening, the Executive Committee finalized the remaining documents necessary to put the contracts together for membership review, before ballots are cast.
The work that Association representatives have been engaged in during the last four weeks has been arduous and time consuming but vitally important. We must ensure that every word in these agreements is correct and that nothing has been overlooked, so TWU-IAM members receive documents to review and vote on that reflect the contract that was made by both parties. We will not sacrifice thoroughness for any reason, and we appreciate the patience and support of the entire Association membership during this process.
Over this weekend, our plan is to review the final documents and to authorize the airline to prepare the contracts for printing and distribution. Next week, the Association negotiating committees will be meeting with TWU-IAM representatives on Monday and Tuesday to review the content of the tentative Agreements. The critical agreement covering implementation of some terms of the Agreements remains to be finalized. Once done, the contracts will be complete.
We anticipate the T/A’s will be released online, Tuesday evening or Wednesday morning, after completing the review of the agreements with TWU-IAM representatives.
Again, we appreciate your patience and support as we bring this process to conclusion.
The full negotiating committees continued to meet this week in Dallas, TX to write the remaining language needed to secure the final contract from the Agreement in Principle made with American Airlines. With a few exceptions, the bulk of that work is now done.
Our next task is to work with our attorneys to finalize the language that properly protects our industry leading 401(k) contributions, pension contributions, and profit sharing. It is important to make sure these critical elements are unambiguous. These core tenants of the new agreement are extremely valuable to members while they are working and when they retire, so we must ensure they are foundationally sound. It is our goal to get this exercise done in our meetings next week.
The final piece of the JCBA will be to reach an implementation schedule with the company. We all expect the benefits of these bargaining sessions to come to us as quickly and as reasonably as possible. This is not assured without written agreements outlining the timeframes of when the changes will start.
While it may seem to be a long process to finalize this deal, it is the intent of your negotiators that we get everything that was bargained for, that it is done right and that you know what to expect. We have spent years in a tough fight and we cannot short circuit the negotiations at the end, just to expedite the process.
Your continued patience and support is appreciated – it is what got us here. This industry best contract will prove that the time it has taken was worth it!
The Association negotiating team met this week with the company in Dallas, TX to continue finalizing contract language to bring our Agreements in Principle (AIPs) back to the membership as complete Tentative Agreements for your consideration.
Making sure the contract language is accurate for this historic ratification vote by our members is a critical step in the process, but this phase is moving closer to a conclusion. The negotiating team is meeting with the company again next week with the intent on finalizing all language.
When all language is finalized, complete text of all agreements will be posted on the Association website, followed shortly thereafter by copies being mailed to all members.
We appreciate your patience as we complete this tedious work in finalizing the T/A language. As always, Association representatives are on the shop floor ready to answer any questions or provide clarification about the AIPs.
As previously announced, the TWU-IAM Association reached Agreements in Principle (AIP) last week with American Airlines on five new Joint Collective Bargaining Agreements (JCBAs). The five-year accords run through 2025.
This week, Association negotiating committee members met with company representatives in Fort Lauderdale, FL to begin finalizing contract language to bring our Agreements in Principle back to you as complete Tentative Agreements for your consideration. This time-consuming work is necessary for accurate full text documents to be presented to the membership before ratification voting begins. We expect this process to take a few weeks.
The parties this week finalized the proposed base wage scales and associated premiums going forward, and those rates for each group accompanies this update.
We ask for your continued patience as we continue the work to bring you complete details on the premier collective bargaining agreements in the industry.
After more than four years of bargaining, the TWU-IAM Association is proud to announce we have reached Agreements in Principle with American Airlines for five new joint collective bargaining agreements (JCBAs) worth $4.2 billion, covering more than 30,000 Mechanic & Related, Fleet Service, Maintenance Control, MLS/Stores and Maintenance Training Specialist members.
The Association negotiating committees must finalize and proof contract language on agreed upon provisions of the tentative contracts, and the parties will continue to meet to accomplish that task. This process could take a few weeks. Preliminary highlight sheets are attached to this bulletin, but the final, complete contract language will be available to all members. In addition to being posted on union websites, the complete agreement will be mailed to each member’s home before voting begins.
After the final language is finalized, membership ratification details and voting information will be announced.
When negotiations began, the Association negotiating committees were faced with the tremendous challenge of combining dissimilar, mature contracts negotiated by different unions with different airlines into JCBAs for the new American Airlines. From the outset, we had a decision to make: get a quick agreement, or get the right agreement for Association members, regardless of how difficult, lengthy and contentious that process would be. As you review the complete terms of the contracts, you will see that we chose the correct path.
Your negotiating committees recommend ratification of these agreements.
These Agreements in Principle will provide all Association members with wages, benefits, work rules, job security and retirement income that had never before been accomplished. Total compensation (wages, premiums, retirement, and profit sharing) is the richest in the industry. Not only are all Association members’ jobs protected in their locations, but more importantly, we were able to protect the work we do. The considerable benefits to all members will be immediately apparent.
Nothing in these Agreements in Principle would have been possible without the support, solidarity and patience of the membership. We ask for your continued patience as we complete and proof every word so you can be presented with all the information you need to make an informed decision when you vote on ratification.
Negotiations between the Association and American Airlines resumed today in Washington, DC. with some progress made. The remaining outstanding issues are few, but are some of the most important elements of a collective bargaining agreement, including wages and job scope language.
The parties will continue negotiations tomorrow, and the membership will be updated as developments occur. Your solidarity has brought us close to an agreement, and your committee thanks you as we try to conclude these negotiations.
Talks continue by phone between the Association Leadership and American Airlines in reaching a JCBA. As such, we wanted to update the membership and dispel a false narrative, speculation and rumors some may be spreading.
We are set to meet again with the NMB on Wednesday, January 29, 2020 at 10:00AM through the close of business on Friday, January 31, 2020. We are hopeful these dates with the NMB will not be necessary, however, if needed they will be utilized.
Further information will be provided as it becomes available.
Over the past several weeks, the Association, the NMB and American Airlines have been working to reach the tentative agreement our members have been promised and rightfully deserve. As most of you know, we also agreed to limit communications in a manner that would not create more rumor or inuendo from either side.
Management Negotiators are frequently absent from these negotiations which was the primary reason for not continuing face-to-face negotiations this week. We also had requested that the NMB allow us to negotiate the week of Thanksgiving, but the Company Negotiators passed on that opportunity as well. We have yet to see Robert Isom or Doug Parker, who we believe are calling the shots from Texas, engage in any negotiating session since the day negotiations started.
With that said, we felt it was imperative at this point to provide a fact-based update to our members about some of the key items that remain open. Below represents a few of the outrageous items Management Negotiators have not provided acceptable solutions to. Please keep in mind that while you may not see an issue listed, others are open, and we cannot agree to a Tentative Agreement until they are all resolved.
Compensation: Management negotiators have walked backwards from their previous public statements and are now only offering the Pay of Delta or Southwest, and with managements 2% out year raises, our members will fall behind in pay once again. This is something CEO Parker has stated would not happen.
Retro Pay: Company Negotiators have flat out insulted our members with their demand for a zero retro payout and have offered a “bonus” that will not cover the missing payday loan they are asking of nearly three quarters of the Association Membership. Remember, retro is a one-time payment to our members for the labor we provide that earns billions of dollars for this company. Our retro pay is no different than management’s stock buy backs of 3.8 billion in 2015, $4.5 billion in 2016, $1.4 billion in 2017 and $2 billion in 2018, except it is in the millions – NOT BILLIONS!
Payroll System: Management is also demanding our members who aren’t paid two weeks in arrears agree to a self-funded Company payday loan demand, so they can switch payroll systems. Obviously, we are fighting this demand since they must pay members weekly by law in some locations. We know the system will accommodate the way our members are currently paid, it just takes more effort on Management’s part to do. Management Negotiators have not offered any other solution to their payroll problem, other than demand our members accept the change to two weeks’ pay in arrears. Just this past week, they made another insulting attempt to convince us the switch was not as bad as we say. Later, Management finally admitted they are demanding TWU members, who are paid biweekly, would be funding an 80 hour payday loan to themselves in order for American to make the payroll change.
Scope Protection: We also remain apart on Scope Protection for our members. Management Negotiators continue to make demands that we accept their proposal that we do significantly less work in the future than we do today. These open items are Scope provisions that we currently have, and are fighting to protect, not additional items.
Vacation: Finally, we are so significantly apart on Vacation that every member should be disgusted with how American views us compared to Management. Their proposal insults all of us by demanding a 5th week of vacation at 25 years and a 6th week of vacation at 30 years, even though management enjoys a 5th week of vacation at 17 years “right now.” Our members have earned the 6th week of vacation at 25 years through the sacrifices made in the work we do.
We are in ongoing discussions with the NMB to solidify additional days and continue negotiations in person or by phone. We remain willing to meet anytime and anywhere, for as long as it is necessary, to achieve the long overdue JCBA our members deserve.
