Northwest Airlines Strike Blog

It's been quite a while since I've posted to this blog.

Most Northwest mechanics have moved on to other jobs and after multiple rounds of negotiations little progress has been made with the airline.

However, a recent development has shown how severely Northwests maintenance and safety performance has been impacted by their decision to lock out it's skilled labor force and replace them with Scabs...

The following is a recent news article about how far the FAA believes Northwests maintenance quality has fallen since the strike began.

Northwest Airlines (NWACQ:PK) recently surrendered its Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) Part 145 repair station certificate in order to avoid having it revoked by the FAA, the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association (AMFA)
reported.

"Northwest Airlines fell far behind in maintaining the staffing and training requirements needed to keep its FAA Part 145 repair station certificate and decided to drop it voluntarily at the end of January," said AMFA National Safety and Standards Director John Glynn. "They were under serious scrutiny, and in effect they quit before they were fired. To my knowledge, Northwest is the only major airline that is operating without this very important Part 145 certificate."

Glynn said Northwest can still do most maintenance work under the basic FAA Part 121 certificate that allows the company to operate as a U.S. air carrier, but has lost the more far-reaching maintenance authority that comes only with the Part 145 certificate. "For example, Northwest can no longer subcontract maintenance work to repair facilities unless they have their own Part 145 certificates, which not all do," Glynn said.

"Northwest can continue to do maintenance work for non-U.S. airlines under contracts, but can no longer do ad hoc maintenance work for foreign carriers, which require Part 145 certification for this work." He said U.S. airlines often handle ad hoc maintenance for foreign carriers, who typically do not have maintenance facilities at U.S. airports. "United Airlines, American Airlines, Lufthansa and some others have turned this work into profit centers."

"The loss of its 145 certificate demonstrates that operations are not normal, no matter what Northwest claims. Losing its FAA Part 145 certificate is not going to cripple Northwest Airlines, but it places serious new limitations on the company and shows that maintenance standards and capabilities have declined," Glynn said.

AMFA's craft union represents aircraft maintenance technicians and related support personnel at Alaska Airlines, ATA, Horizon Air, Independence Airlines, Mesaba Airlines, Northwest Airlines, Southwest Airlines and United Airlines. AMFA's credo is "Safety in the air begins with quality maintenance on the ground." To learn more about AMFA, visit www.amfanatl.org.

My thoughts and prayers continue to be with the workers and their families.

Best of luck...

Well, as I said to the pilots and FA's in my first few posts... Your next!

It has happened sooner than I thought it would.

Northwest has gone back and asked for more money from both the flight attendants and pilots.

And it looks like they are playing hardball this time...

By leaving the mechanics to defend the entire industry alone, you have just made Northwest bolder. You have shown them that they can pick off the unions one by one, and that's just what they are going to do.

I STRONGLY recommend that all Flight Attendants and Pilots DEMAND that their unions re-vote on whether to support or screw the mechanics... Because unless you stand up with them, you are going to screw yourselves.

Here is an article that explains what NWA is doing now:
http://www.crainsdetroit.com/cgi-bin/news.pl?newsId=6746

A recent article in the Minneapolis Star Tribune cites the safety concerns many flight crews have with the quality of Scab maintenance.

If Northwest can't convince their own workers it is safe to fly, how do they expect the general public to believe their spin?

Flight attendant concerns
Tuesday, a spokesman for the
union representing 10,000 Northwest flight attendants said hundreds of them are
calling their headquarters daily with concerns about safety and the ire of
passengers who are facing delays.

"We are having [attendants] who are calling and saying they're
concerned about flying on these aircraft," said Bob Krabbe, spokesman for the
Professional Flight Attendants Association. Attendants cited instances that
included a plane's tires shredding on landing in Detroit and another plane in
which the cabin filled with smoke in Detroit.

"They're telling us that they're having problems communicating with the
mechanics," Krabbe said. "All of this is leading to concern on their part that
there is the potential there for some problems."

The union is advising flight attendants to document the problems in
logbooks, he said, as well as to contact the Federal Aviation Administration
(FAA) if problems are serious.
"We've expressed concern to [Northwest] that
we're not getting reports in a timely manner about safety incidents," Krabbe
said.

Northwest's replacements include 350 licensed management mechanics and
1,200 licensed contract mechanics, Bagdade said.

Meanwhile, the Air Line Pilots Association is fielding about 25 calls a
day from members, with a few raising concerns about mechanic issues, said Will
Holman, a spokesman for the group. Northwest management has not been sharing any
hard numbers with the pilots on delays and cancellations, he said.

"We've communicated to our pilots to be extra vigilant when performing
their duty, to make sure that the correct aircraft logbooks and that all
aircraft and flight paperwork is properly completed and up to date," Holman
said. "Our pilots are focused on the most important task, and that is safe
operations."

Meanwhile, striking mechanics say the proof of how Northwest will do
without them is yet to come.

"I'm shocked they're doing as good as they are," said Todd Kehrberg, a
mechanic who was on the strike line Tuesday. "But they're robbing Peter to pay
Paul. Over time, it'll catch up."

Full text of the article can be found here:
http://www.startribune.com/stories/535/5575749.html

I would like to share a comment we received from a mechanic with another airline, that helps illustrate the fct that the true test of this strike will come when the "10 day MEL" limt starts to get hit.

Anonymous said...
Just like to say that I am behind the NWA mechanics 100%. The airlines have specifically targeted maintenance in their cuts. Maintenance has taken a bigger cut in terms of people then any other work group. This is industry wide.

The flying public has no clue about an AMT's job and they are led to believe that anyone can do the job. That is a lot of bull. An AMT's job is mixture of so many types of mechanical abilities. The knowledge that is accumulated with years of experience cannot be replaced. The company could train people for a year and those people still couldn't begin to fill the shoes of an experienced AMT.

I have been very sad and upset for the last couple of years as our profession has been attacked without mercy. It's doesn't feel good when everyone berates your chosen career and belittles the contribution that you give to your company. We are important and we matter.

I work line maintenance myself at another airline and my coworkers and I have figured it would take about a week for the strike to really start affecting NWA operation. Even with highly skilled and experienced AMT's working, Airplanes break down and it sometimes takes a while to troubleshoot the problem. With the Scabs, I imagine that with some of the problems that they will encounter, they will have no clue even where to begin much less have any idea on how to fix the plane. These problems will compound. Sure they can MEL away a lot of problems, but if NWA pilots are like ours, it won't take long before pilots begin to refuse an airplane due to the amount of MEL items on the planes. Plus a lot of items can only be MEL'd for 10 days and then they have to be fixed. Also, if the FAA is doing the job that they are supposed to be doing, it will not take long for them to start flagging some of NWA maintenance.

I pray for all the NWA AMTS. They are standing up for our entire profession and maybe one of last hopes for respect.

----------------------------------------

For those who do not know what an MEL is or what this 10 day limit is...

MEL stands for Minimum Equiptment List. There are certain repair items that can only be put off for 10 days, before the FAA mandates that they be repaired or the aircraft cannot fly.

So as the scabs continue to put off maintenance items to keep up the apearnce that "all is well", this MEL count will continue to rise. Unless Northwest plans on doing something very creative with thier mainenance logs, they are going to have to start fixing these items.

It amazes me at how gullible the media seems to be at buying Northwests business as usual spin.

It seems that most of the TV, web and news paper reporting is still saying that the strike has had little impact on Northwests schedule.

But this clipping from the Detroit News paints the true story...



As you can see, at Laguardia out of 8 flights on 2 were unaffected, a 75% impact (with 25% cancellation rate.)

In Vegas, out of 4 flights only 2 left on time, a 50% impact with a 25% cancellation rate.

In Orlando out of 5 flights only 1 was unaffected, an 83% impact.

Lax, 50% effected.

Ohare 50% effected, with 1 cancellation.

Denver, 50% effected.

Phoenix, 75% effected.

With these type of delays and cancellations, how on earth can the press still be reporting the NWA talking points?

I would also like to take a moment and thank everyone who has posted kind words of support and encouragement for these workers and their families.

We are also receiving reports from the picket lines of flight crews and flight attendants (the ones who DID vote to support AMFA) bringing donuts, and drinks to the guys walking the lines. I want to extend my personal gratitude to those of you who have done this.

My dad told me of one Flight attendant who was actually crying because she didn't want to cross the picket line, but she knew that she would lose her job if she didn't.

I encourage everyone, even passengers who are not able to change their travel plans to other airlines to continue to express and show your support.

Thanks.

I have herd and read several press reports, statements by Northwest officials and even comments (by anti-union NWA supporters) in this Blog, claiming that the "replacement workers" (Better know as dirty rotten Scabs...), have MORE experience, training and qualifications that the men and women on strike.

These statements are outright LIES. And they are so offensive, that they make me want to PUKE!

First...

Northwest themselves says that the average experience of the Scabs is only 14 years.
And, while I am not positive of how they are arriving at this number, I am sure that they are factoring in every minute of aviation experience that they can justify. They are counting someone who has spent the last 14 years working in general aviation, on single engine piston aircraft as being a "14 year veteran".

And I am sure that many of the replacement workers that have refused to cross the picket lines are among the former airline mechanics, whose experience helped Northwest to inflate that 14 year number.

But even if the SCABS do have 14 years of experience...

After the massive layoffs and re-locations of the last 18 months (the AMFA workforce has ALREADY bee cut in half,) that's still far LESS than ANY current REAL mechanic on strike against Northwest!

I could be wrong, if you know of an aircraft mechanic at Northwest who was left after the layoffs with a seniority date before 1991 (14 years) let me know. But I am not aware of any. My point is that the average experience of the skilled and dedicated men and women being "replaced" is well over 20 years.

And that is not 20 years in just ANY aviation experience. That's 20+ years of experience working on the exact aircraft Northwest operates.

My father printed a copy of his "training record" and the thing was over 8 feet long!

He has been trained and has worked on EVER aircraft type Northwest operates. And he has both his A&P and R&E licenses. So basically he is qualified to work on any system, electronic, mechanical or structural, on ANY aircraft Northwest operates.

For Northwest to lose that level of skill, knowledge and experience is down right foolish.

Well, we are now in day two of the AMFA strike against Northwest Airlines.

I would like to share a recent message I received from a Northwest Mechanic family member that closely reflects my own experience, growing up in an airline family...

Anonymous said...

My dad has been with Northwest Airlines for almost 27 years. He worked his
way up the ladder from plant maintenance to a mechanic. Northwest has always had
an impact on our family's life. From all the time away from home at training
schools, the crazy shifts and getting transferred to other states. Northwest has
always been a major part of our lives. My dad was just 15 months from retirement.
It wasn't supposed to end like this. He worked too hard for this airline to be
treated this way. I am proud of my dad - his level of knowledge is second to
none. Now they bring in replacements that have "weeks" of training?? I'm scared
for anyone flying a Northwest Airlines flight.

I share the exact same senements of pride in my fathers service to Northwest. The level of experience, skill and knowledge Northwest is losing is shameful.

For those of you who have spoken out so hatefully against these hard working families, ask yourself this question...

If your employer forced you to move, repeatedly (some mechanics have had to relocate cross country more than four times in the last 18 months, just to keep their jobs) plunging you deep into relocation related debt, and then conducted labor negotiations, with no intention of ever coming to an agreement, and on top of that required a 25% paycut on top of laying off 50% of the workforce, what would you do?

Could you avoid banruptcy if YOUR income were cut by over 25%?

Steve MacFarlane, The Assistant National Director of AMFA recently released a letter to the replacement workers.

Steve raises some great points and asks several though provoking questions...

An open letter to the NWA Replacement Aircraft Mechanics

Here is an interesting and eye-opening news report...

Fired NWA Replacement Claims Inadequate Training

Interesting reading...

Also an article from the Detroit Free Press...

Two Northwest jets encounter mishaps at Detroit

A tale of two story's...

Northwest spokespersons have been blanketing the media for days, telling the public that the strike by it's mechanics, will have no impact on it's schedule.

However...

A recent message on the NWA ALPA (Airline Pilots Association) website, tells a different (and I feel more accurate) story.

The ALPA's Master Executive Council (MEC) Chairman Mark McClain, said the following in his "MEC Hotline" Friday, Aug. 19th.

"Management has advised ALPA that operations will likely be affected over the coming days as a result of a large number of aircraft currently out of service and a high volume of MELs on in-service aircraft, so please continue to exercise your patience and professionalism."

The full MEC Hotline can be found here:

http://www.nwaalpa.org/hotlines/hl.2005-08-19.html

This contradiction from Northwest's public comments, illustrates the their recent pattern of misleading and down-right deceptive tactics.

We cannot allow them to "have it both ways". Only by shining the piercing light of truth onto the dark intentions of NWA management can the public stay informed.

A Federal Judge in the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota, has issued a Temporary restraining Order (TRO) prohibiting the AMFA represented mechanics at Mesaba Airlines (Northwest Airlink) from honoring the strike by Northwest mechanics.

The ruling forces AMFA members at Mesaba to cross picket lines against their will. And further the ruling infringes on the First Ammendment, free speech rights of Mesaba Mechanics, by prohibiting them from even supporting their union brothers and sisters, by picketing with them.

The wording of this ruling is as follows:

Mesaba Mechanics and their AMFA representatives...

ARE PROHIBITED FROM DIRECTING, CALLING, CAUSING, AUTHORIZING, INDUCING, INSTIGATING, CONDUCTING, CONTINUING, ENCOURAGING, ENGAGING, OR TAKING PART IN ANY PRIMARY OR SECONDARY SLOW DOWN, SIT DOWN, WORK STOPPAGE (INCLUDING REFUSAL TO CROSS PICKET LINES WHETHER ESTABLISHED BY STRIKING EMPLOYEES OF NORTHWEST AIRLINES OR OF OTHERS), STRIKE OR PICKETING OF MESABA'S PREMISES, UNTIL THE PROCEDURES OF THE RLA HAVE BEEN EXHAUSTED AS IT RELATES TO THE CBA. THIS ORDER SHALL NOT BE CONSTRUED TO PROHIBIT LAWFUL PRIMARY OR SECONDARY STRIKE ACTIVITY BY PERSONS OTHER THAN MESABA-AMFA EMPLOYEES BOUND BY THE CBA.

The full text of this unfortunate ruling can be found here:
Mesaba_8-20-05.pdf

The sad fact of the matter is...

Knowing how Northwest thinks and operates, I have no doubt that they have factored in the costs of losing one or two aircraft due to the lower quality maintenance they will be getting from replacement workers (Scabs) and from outsourcing wide body maintenance overseas.

They have run the numbers and know that the saving that they will get by discarding experienced workers will outweighs the costs to settle post-crash family lawsuits (most of which will be paid by the company's insurance providers.)

The loss of human life and the devastation to families doesn't even enter into the Northwest equation.

Northwest claims that the level of maintenance they will receive from overseas outsourced major repairs, by foreign workers meets the minimum FAA requirements.

My question for Northwest (and the FAA who is just sitting back and allowing this) is...
How many FAA inspectors are in Malaysia where this work will be done?

It is my fear that it is not the FAA that will be inspecting the outsourced work of these foreign workers, it will be the NTSB...

A bit of good news on the strike front.

All along Northwest has promised to "fly a full schedule" and that there would be "no impact" when it's highly experienced mechanics were replaced by inexperienced Scabs.

One thing the airline has used to skew the "years of experience" numbers for the replacement workers, is the claim that some of them are mechanics laid off from other major air carriers.

However, it appears that many of these workers (particularly a sizable group from Eastern Airlines) are refusing to cross picket lines. Rumor has it that many of the former Eastern mechanics, hired on with the Scab force months ago, simply to collect money for training and get paid to sit in hotels waiting for the strike to occur. They never had any intention to cross picket lines.

As you know Eastern's attempt to break their unions in the 80's led to the carriers extinction.

Reports are in from several stations, including Philadelphia and Kansas City, that only a handful of the expected Scabs have show up to work.

Also, a check of flight status for Northwest is showing multiple delays system wide as aircraft sit, waiting for Scab sign-off to fly. Many of these delays are also, most likely being caused by confusion over where and how to move aircraft for each bank of flights.

Each night, Northwest's team of skilled and experienced mechanics, play an intricate game of "chess" moving dozens of aircraft on and off the gates, staging them to be ready for the mornings bank of flights. The lack of experience and coordination among the Scabs, combined with their apparent lower than expected turn out, seems to be causing ripples throughout the Northwest system.

Replace mechanics with DECADES of experience and you can "Fly a full schedule, with no impact"?

YEAH RIGHT!

AMFA's Motto:
"Safety In The Air Begins With Quality Maintenance On The Ground."

I recommend a temporary modification to this motto...

The mechanics had hoped that the flight attendants would honor the picket lines (they knew the pilots wouldn't...)

But, the flight attendants union has said that they will not honor the picket lines and their members will cross.

This is a stupid and short sighted move. Apparently they are forgetting that THEY ARE NEXT!

Northwest is making no secret of the fact that they intend to break the unions one by one. When the smoke clears there won't be a single union worker remaining at the airline.

The only hope the other unions have is to join together with the mechanics and refuse to cross the picket lines. If they believe that they are protecting their own jobs by leaving AMFA hanging out in the wind, they are in for a very big shock when THEIR scab replacements start taking over.

Flight attendants have already been asked to train some of their own replacements! Wake Up!

O.V. Delle-Femine, AMFA's national director said:

"The eight-month negotiating period has been an arrogant farce with a
predetermined ending," said Dell-Femine. "The fact that Northwest began making
strike preparations 18 months ago, a full year before our negotiation process
started, proves that the talks were a farce. This regressive final offer simply
confirms that Northwest's plan all along has been to force a strike and enter
bankruptcy, in the hope that a judge would impose the economically devastating
terms Northwest knew it couldn't get through the normal give-and-take of
negotiations. Their goal is to bust our union and all their other unions, one at
a time."

He is right! Northwest has been planning for this for over a year and a half. They WANTED the union to strike. They have not negotiated in good faith from the beginning. Northwest apparently had no intention of ever coming to an agreement on a new contract, because an agreement would have ruined their union breaking plans.

The other unions at Northwest need to stand with the mechanics and HONOR THE PICKET LINES! If they don't, they are next...

Saturday, August 20, at 12:01 a.m. EDT, Northwest Airlines Mechanics officially went on strike.

I've decided to create this Blog because my father is one of those mechanics. And it has broke my heart to see how awful Northwest airlines has treated (or mistreated) it's highly skilled, dedicated and experienced maintenance workers.

After putting in over 23 years of dedicated service, he has been put on on the street and replaced by poorly trained and inexperienced Scab laborers.

I'll be honest, as a politically conservative business owner, I have never been a fan of organized labor. I felt that, while there was a need many years ago for workers to band together and demand fair pay and treatment, modern business conditions had made labor unions an outdated concept.

But after watching what has transpired at Northwest over the past few years, I've changed my opinion considerably. The level of ruthlessness, manipulation and rotten tactics Northwest has used on it's workers is down right indecent.

As the strike progresses I will begin to bring to light, many of the ways that Northwest has conspired to hurt the very workers who helped build it.

Check back often for frequent Strike updates.

If you or a loved one have been affected by this Strike or by Northwest's ruthless anti-employee harassment over the last few years, I encourage you to post your comments and stories here.

The public has a right to know just what these workers have been put through and how many lives and families have been devastated, financially and emotionally by Northwest's heartlessness.