DL141 Messenger Summer 2009

Airlines’ Tangled World

Delaney discusses unholy alliances and issues facing 141 Members

For-Profit Health Care

Atkinson diagnoses business, government, and media

This Season’s Rock Stars of Labor

A look at superstars in the history of the labor movement

Official Publication of District 141, International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers Editor-in-Chief – Rich Delaney Executive Editor – Dave Atkinson Managing Editor – Mike Mancini District 141 Communicator – Mike Mancini District 141 Communicator, US Airways – Dave Lehive Layout & Design – Mike Mancini Send Address Changes To: District Lodge 141, P.O. Box 1149, Redwood City, CA 94064-1149 Main Phone: (847) 640-2222

Member-friendly businesses Fairview Manor: Guest house in redwood tree-studded Santa Cruz mountains, minutes from the beach. Gael Abayon, 141 Retiree, Innkeeper. (831) 336-3355 fairviewmanor.com Interline Cruise Connections: A true interline agency; no fees, unheard of low rates, airline savvy, and knowledgeable staff. (800) 654-3827 (303) 730-2225 www.airlinecruise.com

CONTENTS Pg 4. Treasurer 5. President

Delaney on the tangled world of airline issues

The FSC’s principles describe how forests should be managed. They include:

6. Review

Author, columnist Michael Pollan on The Politics of Food

• Respect for international workers rights • Prohibition of the use of hazardous chemicals • Respect for human rights, with particular attention to indigenous peoples • No corruption • Identification and appropriate management of areas that need special protection, including cultural or sacred sites; habitats of endangered animals or plants

7. Member Spot

Saint Francis, United CSR, rapper, humanitarian

8. Education 9. Safety 10. Organizing AirTran: “60 Days to D.C.” may lead to first organizing

So how much more is all this green costing?

victory in a decade; Cards already filed

More than 179 years ago, to the chagrin of business leaders everywhere, “the most dangerous woman in America” was born. The season also commemorates the passing of John L. Lewis, whose legacy includes founding the CIO, now part of the AFL CIO

Listing of retired Members; Obituaries

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Established in 1993 as a response to concerns over global deforestation, the FSC now has offices in more than 45 countries.

Products carrying the FSC label are independently certified to assure consumers that they come from forests that are managed to meet the social, economic, and ecological needs of present and future generations.

Atkinson on health care

14. Remember

Every issue of the new Messenger is printed under certification by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), an independent, nongovernmental, not-for-profit organization that promotes responsible management of the world’s forests.

“FSC provides standard setting, trademark assurance, and accreditation services for companies and organizations interested in responsible forestry,” District 141 President Rich Delaney says. “We’re proud to be one of those organizations.”

Summer 2009

12. History

Went green, stayed union, saved money

“We’ve reduced production cost by about one-half,” says Dave Atkinson, Secretary Treasurer. “We produce the new Messenger 90 percent in house. It’s quarterly now, and it’s about education. Before this, it was 90 percent outsourced; it was about news, and it had a shorter shelf life. Bottom line is we’re spending less dues money for the new Messenger with a longer life, at a unionized printer.”

That’s a little green we can all appreciate.

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MEMBER TALK

RDU — Likewise, better communication, thanks to safety meetings. When vendors show up, that helps.

WHAT IS DISTRICT 141 DOING FOR YOU?

Safety, everyday

The worst-kept secret among airline executives is their obsession with everything cheap. That preoccupation, and the executive salary benefits derived from it, also extends to safety, and safety-on-the-cheap is something from which we need to protect ourselves daily.

We may not be able immediately to change the greeddriven executive culture, but nothing is stopping us from voicing our own concerns about safety. Safety issues are, after all, what we face each time we go to work.

District 141 Members Kevin Ash­–RDU, Mark Stevens–PBI, Dennis Spence–PHL, and Eli Concepcion–PHX, join District 141 Communicator–US Airways, Dave Lehive.

WHAT’S YOUR SENIORITY IN THE AIRLINES, AND HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN A STEWARD FOR SAFETY? PHL — 21 years seniority; 5 years Steward for Safety PHX — 10 years seniority; 6 months Steward for Safety PBI — 24 years seniority; 2 years Steward for Safety RDU — 25 years seniority; 6 months Steward for Safety WHAT IS YOUR STATION’S CURRENT, NO.1 SAFETY ISSUE?

PHX — Having the District 141 Director of Safety coordinate time off for Members to address legitimate safety issues is a huge benefit.

PBI — We appreciate follow-up, which 141 is providing, when Members bring forth safety concerns.

RDU — We’re just getting this whole thing underway, and district support is driving it.

WHAT ARE STEWARDS OF SAFETY DOING FOR YOU? PHL — Regular briefings on Thursday mornings and swing shifts. We update the safety bulletin boards and we do random recurrent training, like how to tag broken equipment.

PHX — Every Tuesday, we do walk-arounds to tag busted equipment. Maintenance audits are big.

PBI — We discuss safety and environmental concerns during the walk-around.

We would like to have a joint safety conference for customer service and fleet service (ramp).

RDU­— We’re trying to make the best of a situation with the contract vendors by working as a group to correct safety problems. We also inspect ground equipment regularly.

PHL — Missing CO2 monitors in the A-East terminal need to be replaced. These units check for unsafe CO2 levels throughout an eight hour day. We are working with management and have initiated the lock-out tag procedure.

Safety Q&A from the Islands

PHX — Our big issue is operating equipment with design flaws. Our workers feel that lav trucks, originally designed for 737s, pose a potential hazard when used with 757s.

Ground & Flight Safety Coordinator and Honolulu’s LL 1979

Henry Young, United Airlines HNLCG, serves as District 141 Safety Liaison. Henry provides insights to District 141 V.P.– Hawaii, Sandy Olmos, for this safety Q&A from Hawaii.

Our other big issue is working in a clean environment; one that is safe.

“WHAT ARE KEY SAFETY ISSUES FOR ALL EMPLOYEES?”

RDU — Having time, staffing, and a clear procedure in place for passenger loading bridge operation. It’s too easy for an accident to occur involving ramp and customer service.

Safety education and training are essential to the extent that it’s applied everyday, by everyone.

WHAT SUCCESS HAVE YOU HAD IN CREATING A SAFER WORK PLACE?

Safety is a lifestyle as much as it is a program. The keys are awareness, practice, maintenance, and accountability.

Accidents happen when there is complacency.

PHL — Gaining an active, working, ongoing safety committee provides freedom to address many safety concerns.

“IS SOSAP WORKING?” (STATION OPERATION SAFETY AWARENESS PROGRAM)

PHX — Having more respect from the company than we might otherwise have without a union improves our communication of safety concerns from Members to the company.

PBI — We are having some luck in communicating with vendors to insist on compliance with safety standards. We also notice improvement in communication between Members and management, and that is a direct result of the union and its involvement in safety.

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For a new program, it is working, but there’s still room for improvement. SOSAP seems to happen on borrowed time, when the employees are between one flight departing and the next one arriving. It needs enforcement, but we’re headed in the right direction.

I do hope my job [Ground & Flight Safety Coordinator] will become obsolete. Of course, that’s in a perfect world.

Summer 2009

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TREASURER

CEO of United Health Group, retired in 2006 with a platinum parachute worth $1.1 billion. McGuire’s billion-dollar-buhbye is the largest retirement package ever paid in corporate America.

For-profit health care: A must-not read

QUALITY OF CARE Capitalism and the essential market-based forces of choice, competition, and incentives have failed to reduce price or improve care.

by Dave Atkinson, District 141 Secretary-Treasurer

If you think we have the best health care system in the world, please stop reading this article. Your head will explode.

We can no longer trust our for-profit health care system.

We cannot be brainwashed by free market propaganda from business, government, and the media. All three have been telling us to believe in a health care system that they themselves don’t even use. Democracy does not mean you have the right to go without health insurance. Democracy does not mean you have the right to go bankrupt trying to pay for your daughter’s cancer treatments.

It’s time for all of us to listen to the issues. It’s time to recognize that the nation has a problem with health care.

FOR-PROFIT HEALTH CARE For many people this is a heated debate, and it should be.

The health care industry spent $134 million on lobbying this year and it paid off — for the economic elite.

The compensation of Aetna Insurance CEO Ron Williams is $24,300,112. The CEO of Cigna Insurance, H. Edward Hanway, is limping along with $12,236,740. William McQuire,

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Are you expecting a little bundle of joy? What you don’t know is you’re about to play the lottery of birth. Thirty countries have a lower infant mortality rate than the United States.

Do you plan to retire in good health and live until your 80? If so, move. There are thirty other countries with a higher life expectancy than the U.S.A. We’re only checking the scores for birth and death. For other health issues, it gets worse.

ONE REMEDY A single payer system works like this. Patients choose from competing doctors and hospitals. Those doctors and hospitals are paid from a universal, nonprofit, health coverage fund. There are no co-pays or deductibles, and there are real cost controls and benefits, for less money than we and our employers pay now.

This is not socialized medicine but more like socialized insurance. The question you have to ask yourself is, do we cut the middle man — insurance companies — out of the picture to provide a better health care system? Do you think health care should be the right of all citizens?

Thanks for thinking.

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PRESIDENT

still the main goal of District 141 negotiations with UAL Corporation. Issues concerning accrual and use of seniority, as well as sick time, are important as well. It all needs to be addressed.

Tangled issues define the summer of ‘09

UNITED NEGOTIATIONS — MEDIATION We continue to meet with United in direct negotiations, as called for under the RLA (Railway Labor Act).

• United negotiations, mediation • US Airways punitive “points” system • Hawaiian Airlines and Mileage Plus negotiations • UAL Corporation’s outsourcing obsession • Organizing: Eliminating downdraft on wages • ‘Super’ alliances and re-regulation

During the first week of August, both District 141 and United will jointly apply for mediation assistance, through the National Mediation Board. This will begin the second phase of negotiations under the RLA.

There’s a saying, “The only way to eat an elephant is one bite at a time.” That’s how District 141 is approaching this tangle of issues; dealing with each in a measured way.

All internal issues, from negotiations to merger, are playing out in the worst U.S. economy since the Great Depression.

Unemployment is climbing from an already high published rate of 9.5 percent. The real unemployment rate is worse. When people who have exhausted their unemployment benefits are included, it’s closer to 16 percent. And none of these rates take “underemployment” into account. Working Americans, many within our district, are working part time involuntarily.

Turmoil is defining the airline industry once again. It is bringing the possibility of bankruptcy back into conversation, and the restlessness of airline consolidation has government battling with itself. ­Consolidation is taking on new forms — whether it’s the newest wave brought on by Republic purchasing Frontier and MidWest or the “older” style, by today’s standards, of a super alliance between United and Continental.

If the unrest of summer of 2000 will forever be known as the “Summer from Hell,” then summer of 2009 may come from the same zip code.

UNITED NEGOTIATIONS Contract talks between District 141 and United Airlines began in the first week of April, and have been continuing steadily since then. We have met face-to-face with the company more often and more consistently than any other Union within United.

The pace has been slower than anyone wishes, but nonetheless deliberate. This stride is necessary to address the many proposals submitted by Members prior to negotiations.

We are attempting to resolve work-life issues that people have told us are important. District 141 does not want to allow work-life issues to get lost in a larger discussion of airline industry economics.

A federal mediator, once assigned, will meet with both parties to determine the status of negotiations. The mediator will also assume control of the talks. That means the mediator will make basic decisions of when and where the parties will meet, and will attempt to guide discussions towards a tentative agreement.

The mediator may ultimately make a decision that no further progress can be made during that phase of negotiations.

Then the mediator will make a proffer of binding arbitration to both sides.

It is important to understand that mediated negotiation does not have a time frame.

Under the law, mediated negotiation can last as long as the mediator determines.

We are hopeful that positive momentum made during recent weeks of negotiations will continue. We hope it will be aided by the presence of a federal mediator. Our goal is to attain a progressive agreement, in the least time possible.

US AIRWAYS “POINT” PROBLEMS RANGE FROM IMPLEMENTATION TO BASIC FAIRNESS US Airways has implemented an attendance policy, known as their “point system.” Issues with the attendance point system have been addressed in the grievance procedure. Now those issues are making their way to arbitration — the final stage of the grievance process.

Problems with implementation of the point system range from its application to its basic fairness.

The transition from the existing attendance policy to this new approach is causing employees to be rushed through the company’s discipline system. Members are now facing discharge, often prematurely.

District 141 aims to address each specific problem with the point system as it occurs. This means hundreds of grievances are in process. We are appealing cases and preparing specific cases for arbitration. The results of arbitration will be used to settle similar grievances. Though not a quick process, this will be the most productive — eventually.

Improvements in wages, benefits, and job security are

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Summer 2009

Outsourcing, organizing, negotiations — continued with President on Page 10

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REVIEW

‘The politics of food’

By Michael Pollan, award-winning author & columnist, speaking at the World Affairs Council of Northern California

“Cheap food turns out to be very expensive,” says Michael Pollan. He’s referring to the $2.5 trillion we spend in the United States on national health care costs annually. Costs, which he says, are related directly to the foods we eat.

Of that $2.5 trillion, three quarters goes to treating preventable diseases. “That does include smoking and alcoholism,” Pollan concedes, but most of those diseases are preventable: heart disease, type 2 diabetes, 40 percent of cancers, and cardiovascular diseases. “The health care crisis in America is another way of saying ‘American Diet,’” Pollan says.

We’re spending less on food and more on health care.

In 1960 we spent roughly 18 percent of national income on food. Today it’s 9.5 percent, about half. During the exact same period, money we spent on health care went from 5 to 18 percent of national income. Pollan acknowledges there are multiple explanations, but the two are related. “Food is the elephant in the room,” Pollan says.

What in this diet is so bad? The usual suspects are saturated fats, refined sugars, trans fats, and refined carbohydrates.

Every population in the world adopting a western diet has developed predictable chronic diseases. We’ve documented it since 1900. These are facts that nobody debates.

So how does the food industry and government deal with these sturdy facts?

By ignoring them. It’s not allowed in debate. The last time the government made any suggestion about food was in 1977. A committee headed by George McGovern issued a simple statement, consisting of only four words, “Eat less red meat.” It turns out the government is not allowed to say eat less of anything when there is a power lobby, and the beef lobby is quite powerful. Lobbyists rewrote very clear words to read instead “Choose meat that will reduce saturated fat intake.” Industry loved it. It was muddier.

It turned an “eat less” message into an “eat more of something different” message. It translated the conversation about food into a conversation about something else — nutrients.

The problem with talking only about nutrients within our diet is that it misses another elephant in the room — our overall diet. It’s like talking about the fleas on the elephant and ignoring the elephant itself.

In the early 1980s, just a few years after McGovern said don’t eat red meat, the country began a low-fat campaign.

Thinking in nutrition terms, we focused on fat. The problem is we binged on carbs. Low and behold, we got fatter, by 12 lbs.

We know what we need to know. To the extent we can get off the western diet, we will be healthier. We need to focus on the elephant, on both individual levels and on public levels.

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On a personal responsibility level, which industry loves to talk about, what to do is deliciously simple. Pollan advises, “Eat food, not too much, mostly plants.” That’s it. In reality, it’s a tidbit harder. Food is well engineered and cheap.

On the policy side, Pollan says we live in a food environment that “favors and enshrines” corn and soy with subsidies. That makes corn and soy cheap. The food industry in turn finds very clever rearrangements of corn and soy, from Twinkies to chicken nuggets. The problem is we are subsidizing the wrong kind of food.

How do you make healthy calories more competitive with unhealthy ones? To change the demand side, the subsidy system has to change. “The health care industry, assuming reform, may turn out to be an ally of the food movement,” Pollan says. If health care insurers are responsible for large populations that they cannot cherry-pick — people they must take care of for a long time — it will be in health care companies’ vested interest to support policies that will make a healthy diet competitive with an unhealthy diet.

It’s not happening now. All corporate power is on one side, with health care lobbies and food lobbies are on the same team. In New York City, each new case of type 2 diabetes costs health care companies over a half a million dollars.

It is currently cheaper to treat rather than to prevent. That means amputating limbs, prescribing medication, and so forth. The economics are perverse, and there’s no incentive for change … yet.

Learn more on michaelpollan.com; itsyourworld.org

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MEMBER SPOT

Rapper and CSR Francis Koenig works to help people with ALS Francis Koenig, Customer Service Representative with United at RDUOZ (Raleigh-Durham), has always loved poetry and music.

“That’s a perfect combination for a rap musician,” Koenig says with a smile.

“I started writing poetry when I was in my early teens.

There were some domestic violence issues in our home between my mom and my step dad, and I needed a way to escape. Later on, I merged my poetry with music.”

Koenig’s musical hobby led him to a side career as a rap musician. “I joined a band and started performing around town,” he says. “I enjoyed it and decided to continue my musical career after the band broke up.”

Koenig performs under the name Saint Francis. He has recorded two CDs and performs around the world. He was in Sweden in January and recently returned from trips to Frankfurt, Cologne, Paris, and Dublin.

“I go into clubs and ask for a showcase,” he says. “They are usually receptive. I do one of my own rap songs and then hand out my CDs.” Koenig has been with United for 10 years. He began his career in his hometown of Greensboro, North Carolina, and was transferred to RDUOZ in October 2008.

He has four older brothers between the ages of 37 and 51.

His relationship with his oldest brother, Donald, inspired his most heartfelt musical composition.

“Donald was diagnosed with ALS [Lou Gehrig’s disease] about eight years ago,” Koenig says. “Although we are nineteen years apart, he is the person I am closest to in the family.

He is my godfather, and because of the way he has handled this terrible affliction, he’s also my hero.”

“Doctors gave him three to five years to live. It’s now eight years and he is still fighting. Even though he can’t move or speak, you can see in his eyes how determined he is to survive.”

Koenig wrote the song, “Hero,” about four years ago. The song is used extensively in public service announcements by the ALS Association on radio and television and also at the organization’s events and fund raisers.

“I’ll perform it anytime and anywhere I’m asked,” Koenig says. “It has become a kind of anthem in the MySpace community for people who are living with this devastating disease.”

Koenig, Donald, and Donald’s significant other have started a nonprofit organization called Angel Hands for ALS,

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Rapper, United Customer Service Rep and humanitarian — St.Francis Koenig belts out “Hero.” It takes one to know one.

(www.angelhandsforals.com). Its goal is to get donations of vitally needed medical equipment and give it to people who suffer with the disease.

“Having the right equipment helps the ALS sufferer’s quality and the quantity of life,” Koenig says.

“I hope all of my colleagues will go to the website and help. It can make a real difference for ALS victims and their families.”

Koenig says juggling a full time job, his charitable endeavors, and his musical career isn’t easy.

“I’m always tired,” he says. “I don’t get much sleep. I put in about 50-60 hours a week on my music alone. But music is my passion and something I enjoy very much. “ “It’s my dream to eventually work at it full time. But I also enjoy my job, so until that day comes, I’ll continue with both.”

More information about Saint Francis the musician can be found on his MySpace page: www.myspace.com/stfrancismusic or you can call him toll-free at 866-709-3368.

Do you have a “hero” in District 141? You can nominate a 141 Hero for interview in a future Messenger by going online.

iam141.org/hero

Summer 2009

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EDUCATION

District educator overhaul District 141’s Education Department is undergoing a complete overhaul. We are training new district educators and retraining current educators. Shortly after taking office, we put in place a complete redesign of the education web page on the new iam141.org. Educational materials used in training classes are scheduled for an update. And District 141 is also completing a technology upgrade, making it easier for the educators to transport equipment, set it up, and teach.

Nine newly trained educators emerged from training classes in May at the District Office. Another class is scheduled for completion by the end of July. When complete, there will be fifteen District educators ready to give Members the training they need and deserve.

District 141 Member training is also underway. Classes already complete are at SFO, LAX, SAN, SLC, ALB, RDU, and ROC. Participants include District 141 Members from US Airways, Hawaiian Airlines, and United Airlines. Also participating were Members from other districts and airlines. More training for more Members at more stations is being scheduled. If any station is in need of training, it ‘s best to talk to your AGC and your Local Lodge President. Those officers know what mandatory approvals are needed, before training begins.

SAFETY

On the job, and off District 141 is working with United Airlines to improve Members’ safety and health, both in and out of the workplace. Initiates are in effect, or in the process of roll-out.

‘MOVE SMART’ AND BACK-A-LINE The goal of MoveSMART® is to teach employees the principals, skills, and attitudes for taking personal control of their own safety. Training focuses on safe lifting and body mechanics, and is designed to prevent employee injuries. Participants learn simple, powerful techniques using principals derived from the martial arts. The program builds a base of techniques and strategies that increase usable strength, improve balance and control, increase body awareness, and enhance judgment. These skills also reduce employee injury associated with strains and sprain type injuries and increase safety while reducing the wear-and-tear of daily work. MoveSMART started at ORD, and already has rolled out in IAD and SEA. Back-A-Line is a new back belt being tested to reduce back strain injuries. These belts are easier and more comfortable belt to wear. They have an extra layer of support when pushing, pulling or lifting heavy objects. The belt can be

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worn all day, compared to old support belts which would need to be removed or adjusted constantly during strenuous activity. The belts have been tested and implemented at PDXCG and SEACG with very favorable results.

District 141 also is working with the IAM Occupational Safety and Health Department. A grant from the Department of Transportation is being used to teach hazmat safety to twenty United Airlines Members. With continuing grants, it is expected that hazmat safety training will extend to the rest of District 141 Ramp and Stores. This safety training is in addition to the hazmat training already given to Members by United Airlines.

It is the goal of District 141 to reduce member injuries through these safety initiatives, and to promote safety both inside and outside of the workplace.

STATION OPERATION SAFETY First launched in the summer of 2008, the Station Operation Safety Awareness Program (SOSAP) was created in cooperation with United Airlines, IAM District 141, and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA.) SOSAP provides employee Members with a self-reporting, voluntary, and non punitive environment for the reporting of incident and related safety concerns. Under this program, Members confidentially submit valuable information about a general safety observation or a specific safety-related event that may not have reported otherwise.

The top five safety concerns captured in the SOSAP reports at United Airlines are: • Driving in Gate/Non Gate Areas • Early Brake Release • Weight & Balance Issues • Passenger Count Discrepancies • Insertion / Removal of By-Pass Pin (Airplane) To file a SOSAP report, always have a Shop Steward present. If you file on SkyNet, access via iam141.org > Member Services > United Airlines > SkyNet, and then navigate to SOSAP.

MEMBER SNAGS 30K FOR SAFETY ED Sometimes it only takes one Member to make a difference in safety.

Meet Richie Howell from Local Lodge 1776 in Essington, Pennsylvania. He just earned a $30,000 grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. Howell plans to use the money to support safety education in his local. “It will keep Members trained and current on safety issues,” he says.

Involving Members throughout the airport is part of the plan for safety education. That includes United Airlines, US Airways, Southwest Airlines, and Atlantic Aviation. “We’ll be able to train all Members,” Howell adds.

What’s the key to this victory? Activism and sticking-toit make a difference. In addition to being a 30-year active employee of US Airways fleet service (ramp), and president of his local lodge, Howell serves on the AFL CIO Transportation Industry Partnership, which he credits for assistance with the grant. Howell also serves on the Penn. State Council of Machinists as Vice President–East, Airlines, and he’s a delegate to the AFL CIO in his community.

A union Member since its inception at the airline, Howell comments on how it was before the Union. “For years there was no say in work rules regarding safety. Our jobs were on the line every day because of it. Now we have a lot more say in the work place.”

Educating Members is a job that never really concludes.

Besides safety education, what other goals does Howell have? “To keep our Members well-educated in politics and legislation. Politics plays a big part in our industry,” he says.

New Members (and newly interested Members) sometimes ask, “What can I do?” Staying informed is the first step.

The inaugural issue of the new Messenger, for example, debunks myths about the Employee Free Choice Act, legislation which is under vigorous attack by corporations and chambers of commerce. Your online resource is always iam141. org. Everyone leads busy lives, and sometimes a quick e-mail reminder is all it takes. You can join our email update list by going online to iam141.org/join.

Members of IAM Safety Committee, Tony D’Aloiso, Chair, collaborated to produce and display a huge safety banner

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Summer 2009

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President ...

and Public Contact, have by themselves taken the action necessary to call for a representation election. There’s a real possibility that AirTran Crew Members could become Members of the IAM.

continued from page 5

HAWAIIAN CONTRACT: MEDIATION? Hawaiian Airlines Members rejected a tentative agreement last spring. Negotiations are underway once again. A gap still exists between what the company offers and what Members believe are true improvements. That means Hawaiian negotiations will soon enter the mediation phase, similar to the United negotiations. District 141 believes that a federal mediator will bridge the differences, allowing Members to vote on a replacement agreement.

MILEAGE PLUS — JOB SECURITY AND AFFORDABLE BENEFITS Mileage Plus (MPI) negotiations also began in April and will continue in direct talks. Issues of job security and affordable benefits are main topics of discussion.

MPI is an example of what has been happening throughout our company and industry. MPI was a once vibrant and active part of United’s sales operation. Today it occupies a single location. MPI has seen the day-to-day effects of moving American work overseas.

District 141’s priority is to stabilize the MPI work. Our priority is to allow remaining employees to work without constant threat of losing their jobs to operations in India or Philippines. While MPI negotiations share things in common with United negotiations, they are not on the same track toward mediation. District 141 will continue with direct talks with MPI, so long as progress is being made.

ORGANIZING ­— CANNOT BE OVERSTATED With a change in organizing leadership, District 141 Organizing Department is seeing unprecedented activity. The importance of organizing success to each Member of 141 cannot be overstated.

High on the radar is bringing current Delta employees into the IAM. In doing so, they would be joining brothers and sisters from newly merged Northwest Airlines.

Delta is now the largest airline in the industry.

As such, it will influence wages, benefits, and working conditions — at all airlines. It is in every airline employee’s interest, regardless of the carrier at which they work, that the new Delta becomes a unionized company. It’s in every Member’s interest that Delta negotiates the future with fully unionized employees.

That’s why I ask every IAM Member to do this: Encourage employees of both Delta and Northwest to participate in the signing of authorization cards, encourage them to call for a representation election, and encourage them to vote in that election.

FROM ‘AIR’TRAN TO ‘FAIR’TRAN Here’s a very encouraging development. The response of employees of AirTran Airways to the IAM continues to be positive. AirTran Crew Members, including Ramp, Reservations,

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It will be a tough fight. Air Tran Crew Members face an employer determined to stay unorganized and determined to remain unanswerable to its employees.

District 141 organizers, using the most up-to-date communications tools, are showing AirTran Crew Members the benefits of belonging to a Union — especially the IAM and especially during chaotic times.

When the date of this election is known, we will again call on District Members to talk to our counterparts at AirTran.

Encourage them to vote. The job security of all IAM Members will benefit from the success of this and future organizing campaigns by District 141.

UAL — NEVER CAN SAY GOODBYE TO OUTSOURCING We continue to address the impact of United’s increased reliance on express carriers and its devastating effects on employees and stations.

We have actively worked with United to structure a financial model to show, in some cases, that IAM Members should continue to perform the work of handling the UAX operation.

The challenge of competing with vendors and non-union airlines for work is great. System wide and in every hub, UAX schedules exceed United’s mainline schedule in size. We must do everything we can to secure as many UAX jobs as possible.

MASTERS OF THE TANGLE The Department of Transportation and the Justice Department are debating pros and cons of a United-Continental alliance. Meanwhile, District 141 and the entire IAM are lobbying the Obama administration to recognize the need for some form of re-regulation of airlines.

In what looks like a replay of the banking and auto industries’ panhandling for protection, major airline heads are asking for government investment in air transportation. They are calling for funding of NexGen satellite air traffic control, infrastructure improvement, relaxing the remaining protection from foreign ownership, and anti-trust limitation.

The IAM believes none of that should be considered unless and until there is some regulation involving worker security. Thirty years of airline deregulation — and the current state of the industry — clearly shows two things: carriers cannot regulate or discipline themselves and workers are the ones who suffer.

Isn’t it ironic, especially during the summer, to think that little league baseball games are played with umpires. But an industry, vital to the success or failure of the global economy, operates virtually without rules or controls to protect workers.

District 141 Officers wish you a safe, enjoyable summer with your family. Stay informed with iam141.org. Stay together.

We’ll be able to enjoy many more summers in the future.

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ORGANIZING AirTran: 60 days to D.C.

After 60 days of organizing work, District 141 files for the right to represent AirTran workers in collective bargaining.

The filing on June 26, with the National Mediation Board in Washington, D.C., culminates phase one of unionizing AirTran crew members (rampers, and customer service agents).

AirTran’s non union workforce exerts downward pressure across the industry on airline worker’s wages, benefits, and work rules.

“We were clear with AirTran crew members about our time frame. No long, drawn-out campaign, but crew members had to support our organizing efforts,” says 141 Director of Organizing, Tim Nelson.

From airTran to

Support us they did. AirTran crew members turned out in record numbers in the key Atlanta hub and in busy line stations system wide.

fairTran

”AirTran is the most oppressive airline company I’ve ever seen,” says Nelson. Pay is among industry-worst. That’s remarkable for an airline whose profits remain among the industry’s highest. AirTran rival Southwest Airlines, in contrast, is heavily unionized by the IAM and others, profitable, and high-paying.

“At AirTran, respect and dignity are out of town,” Nelson says. He notes AirTran crew members are written up routinely — and fired — for not charging extra for a overweight bag.

When a passenger adds weight to the bag after contact with an AirTran crew member, workers are still held liable.

“It’s insane,” says Nelson. “Crew members on the ramp get axed for late flights, with no recourse. The work-life expectancy of an AirTran crew member is about six months.”

The company maintains a take-it-or-leave-it attitude. Crew members either quit or get fired.

This stinks. Our organization exists in part to free these folks from unchecked corporate oppression. The aim is to empower workers with a voice. “It’s our mission, it’s what we do, and it is our duty to reach out and organize these folks,” declares Nelson.

However, a difficult road lies ahead because AirTran management is determined to stay non union. Nelson appeals to all locals to support District 141 Organizing by talking to AirTran folks at your station. Encourage them to do the right thing. If you can mobilize organizing committees for this, contact Tim Nelson.

Moving forward, Nelson anticipates a complete ballot count by late August. Follow the campaign at www.airtrancrewmember.com. Nelson encourages all airline workers to add supportive comments to the AirTran message board.

Nelson concludes saying, “It’s the humanitarian thing to do. It’s also smart politics and smart economics. These folks

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Tim Nelson’s cell is 224.234.5414; tnelson@iam141.org Contact information also on iam141. org > About > Staff

need our help. We all benefit — all workers in all airlines and other middle class jobs — when downward pressure on wage, benefits, and work conditions is limited or removed.”

The next step is to hold an election at AirTran in which workers can vote for or against union representation. Unlike a U.S. presidential election, for example, a simple majority vote is not considered “good enough” under current law. Instead, more than 50 percent of all eligible workers must vote “yes.”

Failure to vote one way or the other counts as a “no” vote.

The system established under NLRA, the National Labor Railway Act, which governs airline labor unions as well, is inherently tilted in favor of corporations and against workers.

The EFCA (Employee Free Choice Act) seeks to level that playing field, and is discussed in detail in the Spring 2009 Messenger (available online at iam141.org).

“60 Days To D.C.” is an organizing effort led by Tim Nelson and assisted by District 141 Communicator–US Airways, Dave Lehive. It may well become the first major organizing victory for the district in over a decade.

Not bad for a couple months work.

Summer 2009

IAM141.ORG

LABOR HISTORY Atlanta’s washerwomen strike

It was the Summer of 1881. With the official end of slavery less than two decades before, thousands of black laundresses were striking for higher wages, respect for their work, and control over how their work was organized. The women were gaining so much support they threatened to call a general strike, which would have shut down the entire city of Atlanta.

Government and business were not amused.

In July 1881, twenty of those laundresses met to form a trade organization, the Washing Society. They sought higher pay, respect, and improved work rules. With the help of black ministers throughout Atlanta, they held a mass meeting and called a strike to achieve higher pay at a uniform rate.

The Washing Society, or “Washing Amazons,” as their opponents called them, established door-to-door canvassing to widen their membership, urging laundresses across the city to join or honor the strike. They also involved white laundresses, who were less than 2 percent of laundresses in the city — an extraordinary sign of interracial solidarity for the time.

In three weeks, the Washing Society grew from 20 to 3,000 strikers.

By August, municipal authorities were taking direct action by arresting strikers, fining members, and making house visits. But the laundresses were not deterred. The white establishment was so agitated that city politicians got involved. The City Council proposed that members of any washerwoman’s organization pay an annual fee of $25 and then offered nonprofit tax status to businesses that wanted to start commercial laundries. Even though the $25 fee would mean several months of wages, the strikers were not discouraged. They responded with a letter to the mayor, agreeing to pay the fees rather than be defeated. “We mean business...or no washing,” the letter stated.

These politically savvy workers were willing to pay the fee in exchange for self-regulation. To them, self-regulation of their industry was about respect. In the post-Civil War South, the laundresses refused to be seen as subordinate. These laundresses saw the strike as asserting their freedom and identity and gaining respect for their work.

The resolve of the striking laundresses — despite the arrests, fines, and proposed fees — inspired other domestic workers. Cooks, maids, and nurses began demanding higher wages. Hotel workers went on strike. Unlike past strikes, employers — aware of the magnitude of the black labor unrest — weren’t confident they could find replacement workers. So the following week, the City Council rejected the proposed fees. The laundresses had prevailed.

In the end, the strike not only raised wages, but also established laundresses — and all black women workers —

IAM141.ORG

She was called “the most dangerous woman in America.”

Rock on, Mother, rock on.

as instrumental to the New South’s economy. The white establishment was forced to acknowledge that black women workers, former slaves, were not invisible.

Mother, what a leader In one tragic week in 1867, Mary Harris Jones lost her husband and her four small children in a yellow fever epidemic.

Tragedy continued to pursue her in 1871, when she lost everything she owned in the Great Chicago Fire. But out of tragedy came triumph for Mary Harris “Mother” Jones who, despite her setbacks, would go on to become what labor activists called “the greatest labor agitator” of their time.

Seeking a new path for her life, Jones began to attend meetings of the newly formed Knights of Labor, which nurtured a passion for justice and equality that she inherited from her Irish-born parents.

Having lost her own family, she “adopted” the working people of America. They responded by calling her “Mother Jones.”

She was born in May or August (exact date is unclear) when Andrew Jackson was president; when she died 100 years later, in 1930, it was the dawn of the New Deal.

America changed a lot in the century of her life, and “Mother” Jones played a significant role in making those changes happen.

Messenger

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She went from city to city helping strikers, leading protests, and organizing workers. In 1898 she helped found the Social Democratic Party and in 1905 she was present at the founding of the Industrial Workers of the World.

After 1890, Jones dedicated most of her efforts to organize miners for the United Mine Workers.

She achieved national fame in 1902, when she led a charge by Pennsylvania coalminer’s wives who chased away strikebreakers with brooms and mops. The next year, she led a “children’s crusade” of striking children who marched to President Theodore Roosevelt’s home in Long Island, NY, seeking the abolishment of child labor.

On February 12, 1913, Jones led a protest in Charleston, West Virginia, and was arrested. A military court convicted her of conspiring to commit murder and she was sentenced to 20 years in prison. Her case created such uproar that the United States Senate ordered an investigation of conditions in the West Virginia coal fields. However, on May 8, 1913, before the investigation began, West Virginia’s newly elected governor set Mother Jones free. She was 83 years old.

Later in 1913, she participated in an epic strike by coal miners in Colorado, where she was arrested and imprisoned twice.

Mother Jones inspired nationwide expressions of outrage against the “machine gun massacre” of miners and their families at Ludlow, Colorado, on April 20, 1914, when 20 people were killed.

Mother Jones went on to participate in 1915 and 1916 in the strikes of garment workers and streetcar workers in New York, and in the strike of steel workers in Pittsburgh in 1919.

In January 1921, at the age of 91, as a guest of the Mexican government, she traveled to Mexico to attend a meeting of the Pan-American Federation of Labor.

In 1923, when she was 93 years old, she was still working among striking coal miners in West Virginia.

Mary Harris Jones died in Silver Spring, Maryland, on November 30, 1930, just 7 months after her 100th birthday. Her grave is near those of the victims of the Virden, Illinois mine riot of 1889.

Lewis: His ‘groupies’ are now known as the AFL CIO John L. Lewis was a rock star among American labor leaders in the first half of the 20th century, regularly advising presidents and challenging America’s corporate leaders.

This year commemorates the 40th anniversary of his death on June 11, 1969.

As founder and leader of the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO), Lewis raised living standards for millions of American families in the 1930s.

In 1935, the first year of the CIO, nearly four million workers joined labor organizations and wages were raised by more

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From coal miner to founder of the CIO to advisor of presidents, John L. Lewis remains a rock star of labor.

than a billion dollars.

Lewis was born on Feb. 12, 1880, in Lucas, Iowa, the son of a Welsh immigrant coal miner. He became a coal miner at the age of 15 after settling in Panama, Illinois.

Between 1898 and 1907, Lewis tried farming, construction work, and running a small business before joining the Labor Movement in 1907. He served as president of the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) from 1920 until 1960.

Lewis sent hundreds of UMWA organizers to help create some of the nation’s leading labor unions, including the United Steelworkers of America, the United Auto Workers, the Communication Workers of America, and many other organizations that continue to speak for America’s workers.

One of Lewis’ greatest legacies was the creation of the UMWA Welfare and Retirement Fund in a contract with the federal government that was signed in the White House with President Truman in attendance.

The UMWA Fund permanently would change health care delivery in the coal fields of the nation, building eight hospitals in Appalachia and establishing many clinics.

In 1964, Lewis was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian decoration, by President Lyndon Johnson. He remained chairman of the UMWA Fund until his death.

Summer 2009

IAM141.ORG

REMEMBER Recent retirees United Airlines

Alforque, Protasio A. Beatty, David G. Berry, Zoe J. Chuck, Gerald E. D’Ambrosio, Julie A. Dagenais, Jewell B. Dittmar, James O. Dohrmann, Ninive C. Dusek, Harvey J. Filipinski, Larry Gleeson, William G. Graham, Patricia A. Harrison, Debra L. Hill, Carol R. Ingo, Dominic B. Johnson, Johnnie L L. Jones Jr., Wilson Kalsbeek, Linda Kim, Curtis G. K. Kowalski, Margaret M. Lorek, Karen Ludwig, Slavica Mahoney, Robert C. Mansfield, Mary Lee L. May, Frances B. McCormick, John T. McFadden, Frank J. Moore, Herbert C. Morris, Colin H. Owens Jordan, Ruth C. Perkins, Rosalina Q. Regal, Steve Reggio, Ellen L. Rich, Corrine K. Rodgers, Annie Sands, Edward L. Satterfield, Cynthia A. Siel, Robert P. Stewart, Betty A. Stubing, Kevin Titcomb, Debra K. Townsend, Melvin D. Turner, Deborah Valdez, Josephine V. Van De Sande, Peggy P. Vandling, Larry M. Veloso, Joseph B. Wong, Carrie C. Wong, Larry C.

LAXCG PITCG CHIRR BUROZ PBIOZ SFOCS DENCS SFOCS PHLCG ORDCG ORDCG LAXCS DTWRR IADCS ORDCG LAXCG SFOJJ LAXCG HNLCG ORDCG CHIRR ORDCG MCOCG RNOOZ SFOCS SJUCS IADCG JAXOZ HNLRR DENCG ORDCG ORDCS ABQOZ SFOCG ORDCG HNLRR LAXCS ORDCG DCACS JFKJL HNLRR DENCG ORDCG ORDCG HNLRR LASOZ LGACG LAXCS ORDCG

22 Yrs 0 Mos 37 Yrs 1 Mos 22 Yrs11 Mos 25 Yrs11 Mos 21 Yrs 9 Mos 41 Yrs11 Mos 9 Yrs 2 Mos 11 Yrs 9 Mos 16 Yrs 7 Mos 12 Yrs11 Mos 19 Yrs 2 Mos 31 Yrs11 Mos 13 Yrs 1 Mos 20 Yrs 6 Mos 21 Yrs 9 Mos 10 Yrs 7 Mos 10 Yrs 2 Mos 10 Yrs11 Mos 24 Yrs11 Mos 19 Yrs11 Mos 12 Yrs 7 Mos 38 Yrs10 Mos 40 Yrs 5 Mos 10 Yrs 1 Mos 11 Yrs10 Mos 10 Yrs 3 Mos 22 Yrs 6 Mos 34 Yrs11 Mos 29 Yrs10 Mos 22 Yrs 3 Mos 11 Yrs 1 Mos 10 Yrs 2 Mos 22 Yrs11 Mos 14 Yrs 7 Mos 10 Yrs 3 Mos 11 Yrs 3 Mos 21 Yrs11 Mos 36 Yrs11 Mos 10 Yrs 2 Mos 20 Yrs 0 Mos 25 Yrs 2 Mos 38 Yrs11 Mos 19 Yrs 9 Mos 16 Yrs 7 Mos 11 Yrs10 Mos 11 Yrs 9 Mos 37 Yrs 1 Mos 10 Yrs 7 Mos 17 Yrs 6 Mos

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04/25/09 05/30/09 03/01/09 02/04/09

US Airways Retirees

Abbasi, Arshad A. Benzin, Richard L. Curbelo, Edward Firmani, Daniel D.

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Full, Edward B., Jr. Gould, Gary L. Gove, Alan F. Griffin, Thomas R., Jr. Hortert, Keith B. Hutchinson, George B. Kirkwood, William H. Megahan,Ralph R. Murphy, Paul E. Norris, Walter C. Peternel, Edward W. Petruska, Charles T. Phelps, James P. Salas, Alfredo Stark, George H. Streyle, Wayne T. Tesauro, Sherry L. Torrey, Brian D. Voss, Erling R. Wynn, Douglas L. Zellers, Dennis E.

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04/18/09 02/03/09 03/12/09 07/17/09 02/09/09 05/19/09 04/10/09 04/11/09 05/30/09 05/03/09 04/27/09 04/09/09 02/13/09 03/02/09 05/25/09 06/28/09 04/08/09 05/17/09 03/08/09 03/31/09 04/29/09

Obituaries United Airlines

Andres, Gary H. August, Harry retiree Besse, Norma T. retiree Burgess, Dale I. retiree Chel, Cornelis retiree Colina, Edgardo G. retiree Connor, Richard F. retiree Conticchio, Libertaria R. retiree Contreras, Juan A. Davis, Marilou E. retiree De Ford, Leslie A. retiree Deavers, Joan K. Delgado, Jesus retiree Ewert, Michele J. Farrelly, James T. Faulkner, Troy C. retiree Fedele, James A. retiree Fensch, Donald W. retiree Fields, Richard W. retiree Fiorenza, Ralph K. retiree Foster, Willie J. retiree George, Mary F. retiree Griglak, John V. retiree Grimaldi, Michael J. retiree Grob, Robert J. retiree Hagedorn, Alma M. retiree Harrison, Vernon O. retiree Hathaway, Eunice A. retiree Higgins, Albert G. retiree Hull, Larry L. retiree Izydorczak, Jo Ann H. retiree Jenkins, Jolene P. retiree Johnson, Lennart O. retiree Johnston Jr, Arthur G. retiree Kaminski, Chester A. retiree

Messenger

SMFOZ JFKCG LAXRR GEGOZ LAXCG SFOJJ JFKFF EWRHH ORDCG SEARR DENCG IADCS MIAHH CHIRR ORDCS MSYOZ DENRR SEAFF DENCG PHLHH ORDCS PDXCS PITCG LAXCG ORDCG SEAFH SLCFF NYCRR HNLCG ORDCS BUFCS LAXCS BOSCG SEACG CLECG

04/05/09 03/07/09 03/25/09 3/16/09 04/01/09 02/06/09 04/27/09 01/10/09 04/29/09 03/08/09 02/12/09 04/01/09 03/17/09 02/24/09 03/17/09 02/21/09 01/04/09 04/28/09 04/24/09 01/16/09 03/04/09 04/23/09 03/27/09 04/26/09 02/08/09 04/16/09 04/08/09 02/27/09 03/20/09 03/31/09 03/30/09 02/14/09 03/21/09 03/13/09 02/24/09

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Larry, Julia M. retiree Layman, Karen S. retiree Lee, Nancy T. F. Lineberry, Stephen S. retiree Malvarez, Carlos A. retiree Man, Ron Mc Morrow, Michael J. retiree Mura, Chizuko retiree Murray Jr, Edward P. retiree Novak, George J. retiree Obas, Francois retiree Paget, Elizabeth A. Palombo, Robert T. retiree Pankiw, Sofia retiree Pemberton, James D. retiree Perry, Dorothea M. retiree Perry, George D. retiree Poole, Betty J. retiree Porria, Walter T. retiree Rakestraw, Kenneth L. retiree Rihel, David J. retiree Robinson, Annie L. retiree Roper, Warren J. retiree Rowles, Gerald W. retiree Rowlette, Vera L. retiree Sanchez, Pedro H. retiree Sapelak, Frank J. retiree Schaefer, Barbara A. retiree Schutte, William D. retiree Seman, Thomas J. retiree St John, Harold R. retiree Staff, Leonard E. retiree Steele, Kenneth W. retiree Still, Robert retiree Stone, John F. Sun, Alice P. retiree Szymanowicz, Anthony Taft, Roy R. retiree Tartaglini, Louis J. retiree Tear, Lorraine A. retiree Thrailkill, Theodore T. retiree Tortoriello, Gennaro retiree Twiddy, Douglas R. retiree Uddin, Inam A. Van Sant, William L. retiree Vizzard Jr, Thomas F. Wall, Mildred L. retiree Wilcox, John retiree Wohlgemuth, Roy W. retiree Wyborn, George E. retiree Zwarts, Jeanette G. retiree

OMACG RNOOZ SFOCS SFOCG MIAHH SFOCS PDXCS DENHH JFKCS DCAFF JFKCG BOIOZ MCOCG SFOHN DENCG IADRR BOIOZ DCAHH SFOJJ ATLCG INDJJ DENHH DENTR SEARR SFORR LAXCS DTWCS SFOGH SEACG CLECG IADFF DENFF BDLOZ SFOCS DENCG SFOCS IADCG SFOCG LAXCS DENCS PDXCS EWRFF ORFOZ IADCG DENCG ORDGQ OMAHH SANCS ORDCG SFOHF LAXFF

02/11/09 02/28/09 04/28/09 02/21/09 02/23/09 02/23/09 03/15/09 04/02/09 02/22/09 03/29/09 04/03/09 04/23/09 12/07/08 03/01/09 04/09/09 02/10/09 02/25/09 03/23/09 03/02/09 03/02/09 04/24/09 03/20/09 04/06/09 03/14/09 02/14/09 04/15/09 02/02/09 04/20/09 03/09/09 02/05/09 02/28/09 04/21/09 03/02/09 03/13/09 04/30/09 02/01/09 02/10/09 02/21/09 03/11/09 02/06/09 04/02/09 03/09/09 04/21/09 04/29/09 04/10/09 02/03/09 04/03/09 04/03/09 03/27/09 02/16/09 02/18/09

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US Airways Obituaries

Hudson, Brian D. Hupp, Michael J. Jamery, Richard M.

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Bricks surrounding the Memorial bear names of fallen Members of the IAMAW.

Workers memorial ceremony honors fallen Members Families, friends, and fellow IAM Members gathered at the William W. Winpisinger Education and Technology Center in Placid Harbor, Maryland as part of a national observance of Worker’s Memorial Day to honor the memory of those who perished on the job or from work-related disease. Each year the IAM honors its fallen brothers and sisters by inscribing their names on bricks that are placed at the Workers’ Memorial at the Winpisinger Center. Family members and co-workers honored the memories of 21 IAM and Transportation Communications Union (TCU) members.

District 141 Secretary Treasurer Dave Atkinson says, “This day always brings remembrance and reflection on those brothers and sisters we have lost on the job.” Forty-two Members of the transportation territory are remembered on the Winpisinger memorial.

Our most recent loss is Walter Bailey, 22. Walter died tragically when his US Airways fleet service vehicle overturned on August 5, 2008.

“The IAM cares very deeply about its Members, their families, and the work our Members do. We struggle and fight hard every day to assure that when one leaves for their job, that they return home safe and sound,” says IAM President Tom Buffenbarger. “We don’t always win that fight, but it inspires us to work ever harder so that others don’t have to endure the pain and grief of losing a loved one. Only when we all make safety and respect for workers paramount will we cease to have a ceremony like today.”

This year’s service was the 20th annual observance of Workers’ Memorial Day, which began in Canada and is now observed every April 28th in thousands of services around the world. In the United States, this year marks the 39th anniversary of passage of the Occupational Safety and Health Act, which created the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to set and enforce workplace safety standards.

Summer 2009

IAM141.ORG

USPS 000-993

INSIDE • • • • •

For-profit health care? It pays, but not for consumers and employers Summer ‘09 presents a tangle of challenges, rivaling UAL Corp’s infamous “Summer From Hell” Simple and messy: “The Politics of Food” Member photos, safety, education Summer rock stars, from the history of the labor movement

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Org it don’t rock without you>>iam141.org/join