NationStates Jolt Archive

http://kare11.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=105356
Northwest Mechanics are on strike


No more talkin', we're walkin'.

The 30 day cooling off period ended at 11:01 Friday night but a few minutes before that Jim Young, the head of the mechanics union came out of the negotiations and announced that the mechanics would strike.

Mechanics were already at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport with picket signs in hand.

Northwest and the mechanics met separately with a federal mediator on Friday, but union officials had said early Friday evening that the two sides were not meeting face-to-face.

Steve MacFarlane, assistant national director for the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association, has said at 8:30 Friday night that it would take a miracle to avert a strike.

It appears no miracle occurred.

MacFarlane said union mechanics in Minneapolis and Detroit had been asked to leave early. Northwest spokesman Kurt Ebenhoch confirmed that "some" mechanics were "being relieved" before their scheduled shifts ended, but wouldn't specify where. He said the mechanics would be paid through the end of their shifts.

Northwest has vowed to keep flying if there's a strike. It has lined up 1,900 temporary workers, vendors, and managers, including hundreds of licensed mechanics, to take over. Some of those replacement workers were reportedly being brought onto airport property as union members were leaving.

Northwest, which says it is losing about $4 million a day, wants its mechanics, cleaners and custodians to take a 25 percent pay cut. It also wants the right to lay off another 2,000 so it can send more of their work to outside vendors. Northwest has already slashed their ranks from 8,390 in 2002 to 4,427 now.

Northwest has said it needs $176 million worth of savings from mechanics as part of $1.1 billion in annual savings from all its employees. It said it made its "last, best" offer on Thursday night, though it wouldn't give details. The Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association said the offer wasn't good enough.

Northwest, the nation's fourth-largest airline, and its regional carriers operate more than 1,500 flights to 750 cities. It has hubs in Detroit, Minneapolis, Memphis, Tokyo, and Amsterdam. It employs about 40,000 people, including 4,427 in the mechanic's union.

(Copyright 2005 by KARE. All Rights Reserved.
All because the airline is being selfish :(

If the airline doesn't cut pay, the employees will lose their jobs. What happens if the airline goes under?

Jesus christ, 50% of the workforce?

The airline isn't being selfish, in fact, without concessions, they said they are likely to file bankruptcy. How are you going to pay greedy workers when you have no money? Unions cause more trouble than goodwill.

They do suck as an airline.

i say they want 2 go on strike let em they might need money for their babies they might have 12 kids you dont know (people who quote the bible to make a point piss me off) :mp5:

I might care if I flew today, but as a consumer, I see them going under, and they can't stop it. The unions know this, too, and may be striking for the hell of it. Northwest will probably die off with the other legacies. The mystery is what is taking them so long.

I might care if I flew today, but as a consumer, I see them going under, and they can't stop it. The unions know this, too, and may be striking for the hell of it. Northwest will probably die off with the other legacies. The mystery is what is taking them so long.

Northwest is hardly a legacy. Even though they do suck.

Northwest is hardly a legacy. Even though they do suck.
Thought they were. Oh well.

I just had a sudden elucidation why the sick carriers live on! They started out as big. They have all the planes, the gates at airports, and the favor of foreign governments. Until very recently, for example, only United and AA were allowed into Heathrow. Iin any case, they have the capacity, and they have the connections with government. They don't need to build it to survive. All that needs to happen is for a carrier to run out of money to keep it. Then, we'll see anarchy in the skies as one, and probably more, air carriers collapse at the same time.

if workers wages are raised more then the business will make less and less profits and if it goes bankrupt it will be the ruin of even more workers not in the strike. to the corporate eye the solution to this is to outsource jobs to other places luckily and unluckily the airlines industry cant have there planes land in countries with cheaper labor to be repaired. therefor labor unions with their ever increasing demands for more everything are tearing apart not only the airline industry but all others as well. no more strikes no more unions.

My dad works for the airlines and the fact that this is happening is making me sick...the airline business is going down the whole because they all have over 500 people on their board of directors who want a million a year...which doesnt work. The reason the pilots and Mechanics and Attendants are getting paycuts is because the BOD doesnt realize that they need to get smaller and not have so many people getting payed so much while some of the most senior pilots who started at making maybe 250,000 a year are now making less than 100,000 which makes them have barely two-fifths theyre original pay and its the same for almost every airline and the government needs to lower fuel taxes because thats a big reason the airlines are in decline :sniper:

Thought they were. Oh well.

I just had a sudden elucidation why the sick carriers live on! They started out as big. They have all the planes, the gates at airports, and the favor of foreign governments. Until very recently, for example, only United and AA were allowed into Heathrow. Iin any case, they have the capacity, and they have the connections with government. They don't need to build it to survive. All that needs to happen is for a carrier to run out of money to keep it. Then, we'll see anarchy in the skies as one, and probably more, air carriers collapse at the same time.

It's actually quite the opposite. Carriers have to buy the routes. For example, during the recent bankruptcy of United Airlines, AA picked up most of their JFK LHR scheduled flights.

It's actually quite the opposite. Carriers have to buy the routes. For example, during the recent bankruptcy of United Airlines, AA picked up most of their JFK LHR scheduled flights.
And government agencies are a bit notorious for blocking smaller carriers out. God bless capitalism.

(see southwest and love field)

Even I can see how the union is being short-sighted in striking. The airline is going under at an alarming rate; they simply cannot afford to operate like they have in the past. A general strike by their workers might just convince Northwest to pack it up for good.

So BOTH sides are being selfish or something like that?

So BOTH sides are being selfish or something like that?

Not selfish, per se. I don't think the union is being selfish in not wanting a pay cut. Just short sighted in not realizing that if they don't take this 25% pay cut, they may be facing a 100% pay cut in a few years.

Ah. I see. :)

http://www.canada.com/national/nationalpost/news/story.html?id=c7f5718a-feb1-49a5-b63b-5c3ede1807c2
Northwest is still flying. That's very good, because it may overwhelm the other carriers if it were grounded. But it can't fly for too much longer. Sooner or later, these planes are gonna need maintainance. And at the age a lot of those planes are, I bet they will break down sooner rather than later.