I Like Lee

From the Forum.  A pilot posted, "I like Lee".  Of course that got me thinking.  Here is a response:

Fair enough.  I respect that opinion.

Speaking as someone who worked under him for almost 5 years, I like him too.  He is very personable, handles tough questions well and is an incredible politician.  He surrounds himself with good people.  All likable, all hard working, sometimes innovative.  I would agree, some good things have been accomplished.

At the same time there are several problems with this picture.  First of all we don't see the whole thing.  Lee and his people are deal makers.  Deals are done in secret, promises are made, established policies we think are being followed, are not always.  Pilots expect the highest standards from other pilots.  We are trained to be lead, but as a cohesive, responsive team.  There are former team members who will tell you this is not the case.

Secondly, they are great at messaging.  They point to USAir, American and United and say, do you want to be them?  They paint conflict as only only two choices, white or black.  WHITE: We do it Moak's way, a business approach.  Company assertions that we have to make a profit before there is any significant return is accepted as gospel along with company data and business plans based on lower pay (and flexibility for higher oil). Or BLACK: We do it like those carriers that are out there screaming in pain and are taking their companies down in ruin by doing so.  Then there is GRAY: We have all been through negotiations.  They have never been just business without some pushback.  Therefore the negotiators conduct cordial business while the Communication paints a very mixed reality including in our public statements.  IE "We love Delta, we care about getting our passengers safely and happily to their destinations and By the Way our trusted CEO cut wages 42% and broke a solemn promise of a pension.  Why do we avoid conflict?  Why do we accept only 2 choices?  Even big business does not operate this way.  We need to be agressive; publicly and privately.

Our union has managed our expectations.  That is the companies job, not theirs.  Next Tuesday evening there is a Frontline on PBS called, Flying Cheap.   Have you ever seen a reporter make a case for us before we make the case for ourselves?   Our Communication Communication should be saying, "Thank God, finally they get what we have been saying".   But sadly, that is not the case. 

On top of that their is a clear conflict of interest in our union.  Regionals in our union sue us for taking their flying!  What has ALPA not split this union in two?  Does dues income have anything to do with it?  This is a problem screaming for fixing and NO ONE in ALPA has touched it.

It is great to be happy.  Perhaps life is better not paying attention to our union's actions (many of which are done behind closed doors) and not interested in the stories behind the anger you see here on the Forum.  I can understand that.  I just hope when someone inarticulately explains their disdain for ALPA you think, there may be more than just sour grapes behind it.