Letter from the Mesa Air Group MEC
"Let us not forget our 233 brothers and sisters who are on furlough from Mesa Air Group."
January 1, 2010
Fellow MAG Pilots:
Yesterday afternoon, MAG President and Chief Financial Officer Mike Lotz served notice to ALPA of the company’s intent to terminate PBS. While we are not surprised by the company’s decision, we are extremely disappointed by their actions. PBS, when used properly, is a great scheduling tool. In fact, many other airlines either have or are trying to get PBS on their properties.
Unfortunately, the company’s decision was not about PBS. It was about trying to leverage the pilot group to again pay for PBS. This was evident when ALPA and the company engaged in discussions to achieve a Letter of Agreement for PBS. During those discussions, the company verbally committed to resolutions but came back with a document that included none of those benefits. Additionally, the company abruptly turned those discussions into ones about settling or withdrawing the grievances pertaining to scheduled vs. actual, sick pay, and cancellation pay.
The company also attempted to get an extension for PBS so that the parties could continue to work on an LOA, begin discussions on the grievances, and develop accurate costing data. The MEC refused as there would be no incentive for our pilots to continue discussions with a company that has proven itself unable to abide by its word, much less to what it has signed. We have been analyzing PBS for months and came to the conclusion that it—along with its associated benefits—was the best tool for our pilots and our company. In looking at the company’s information, it was clear that there were errors in their data, and these flaws were pointed out to the company. The company indicated that liability and cost are driving their decision-making process. We have seen costing errors before and believe we are seeing it again. For a company that was going to base its decision on costing, we were shocked to see that no diligence was done from day one to track the exact cost benefit analysis of PBS. The company chose to run a quick cost benefit analysis in early December to determine the facts. Many assumptions were made in this costing and several factors were not taken into account.
The MEC also warned management that trying to save a few dollars at the expense of this pilot group would do nothing but unravel everything we have accomplished to date. Obviously, the company did not heed our advice and has set upon a path that is contrary to its EPPIC core values; there is nothing Ethical, People driven, Performance driven, Innovative, or Collaborative in the company removing PBS because they cannot force the MEC into settling grievances. On the contrary, the company’s actions are a clear indication that the company wants to go back to the days of contentious labor-management relations—something that neither side benefitted from.
There’s no doubt that the company is facing the worst time in its history, and it seems as if the company is determined to push Mesa Air Group further into despair. Under PBS, our partners have enjoyed a vast improvement in our performance, instead of the disarray and chaos that routinely occurred every first week of our bid. It is too soon to tell how returning to the old system will effect our partners, but it is foolish to think that going back to something that was filled with problems will somehow provide a benefit going forward. The MEC is convinced that returning to a system that did not work and all parties wanted to change is not the answer. Under that system, we spent three weeks out of every month trying to recover from the damage done during the first week of bid integration.
It is also too soon to tell how the company’s decision will affect the pilots. In any case, rest assured that the ramifications of their decision and the reasons behind it will have a long-lasting effect on all future discussions between ALPA and the company. Additionally, even with the removal of PBS the three grievances related to scheduled vs. actual, sick pay, and cancellation pay still exist and will be arbitrated.
We will continue to update you as events warrant. Discussions with the company will take place soon to discuss the transition from PBS back to paper bidding, and we will let you know more as events transpire. Please continue to stay informed. Have a safe and happy New Year.
In unity,
