Federal board rules for Delta in union election

[Omaha Steve]

Source: Omaha World Herald-AP

ATLANTA (AP) - Delta Air Lines Inc. says a federal board has upheld results from an election that blocked a union from representing its flight attendants.

Delta said late Friday that the National Mediation Board rejected claims by the Association of Flight Attendants that the company interfered in the representation election last year.

The union criticized the ruling, saying Delta unfairly pressured flight attendants to vote against representation and, in some case, supervisors made threats against union supporters.

"This is not democracy, not in outcome nor process," the union said in a statement.

Read more: http://www.omaha.com/article/20111119/AP05/306019798

[proud2BlibKansan]

1. Just talked to a former Delta employee the other day

He lost his entire pension and is now a checker in a grocery store. At age 68.

Damn.

[SoapBox]

2. The whole thing is bizarre...

Delta management, over the course several union votes (in the flight attendant department), spent millions and millions of dollars, with a company that specializes in keeping unions out. They coach the company on what to say, how to say it, when to say it...just the right nuance, here and there. A lot of it, just plain old illegal by law.

Then you have a work force (of the original Delta employees) that is heavily Southern...they have been born and bred into the "unions are bad" mind set.

The funniest part of union votes at Delta is that the employees, just like the T.Baggers, vote against their own interests.

Delta can change anything at will...pay, amount of time worked...and, God forbid you get into a messy situation because you have NO legal support.

Delta has some of THE dumbest employees ever.

[Populist_Prole]

3. They weren't called "Deltoids" for nothing

They endured cutbacks and outsourcing and I can't see how much longer the long gone 'Delta Family' aura will keep them compliant.

[SoapBox]

5. Exactly...

The vote for the attendants, was supposed to have been very close. Something like under 200 on the no side, out
of something like 16 or 17 thousand (guessing) ballots.

Delta management always liked to bring up Eastern and PanAm as failed carriers that were union.

I think the Southwest and Alaska are better examples of how unions work with the companies (no, not
always smoothly but at least they have a voice at the company). Besides, pilots at all (are there
any non-union at major carriers???) carriers are ALPA. Seems the companies survive just fine with
ALPA on the premises.

[24601]

4. For the average FA, Delta is the better long-term employer. First

year flight attendants flying for Delta are 5th in compensation. By the 6th year and beyond, Delta's cabin crew salaries lead the industry.

http://www.cabincrewjobs.com/salarycomparison.html

[Omaha Steve]

6. Delta pilots are unionized

Glad to hear they have good pay and benefits!

http://crewroom.alpa.org/dal/DesktopDefault.aspx?tabid=2421

[24601]

7. The link was for the Flight Attendant data. n/t

[Omaha Steve]

8. Here, from the link

Unlike traditional airline merger scenarios, the proposed merger is unique in that, for the first time in the history of airline mergers, the Delta pilots, through their union representatives, have participated from the formative stages of the proposed merger.

[boppers]

11. I think his point was that the OP was about FA's, not pilots. eom

[dflprincess]

9. That's one way to keep the unions out

and once the unions are gone Flight Attendant pay will drop.

I heard from a former Northwest FA that prior to the election Delta did it's best to keep the union and non-union flight attendants apart - including separate lounges.

[boppers]

10. Also the highest maximum pay.

"Delta 19th yr. - $44,601.00"... for 75 hours of flight work per month, $49.50 an hour.

[No Elephants]

12. Not surprising. Employers who want to keep unions out have for many years

used fairly good pay as one of the ways to keep employees from unionizing. If unions did not exist, who knows what Delta would be paying Flight attendants?

Unions fight for more than salary alone, though.

For instance, the unionized Delta pilots get a fair amount of time off between flights, so they can be rested and alert when they fly.

[qwerty]

13. Delta (union-less) and Northwest (union) both went bankrupt but Delta recovered, absorbed NW and

provided jobs to NW's unemployed union workers.

Are those the facts?

(sorry Jody had to steal this it was too good)