Striking pilots get little sympathy

Journal Record, The (Oklahoma City), Feb 18, 1997

DALLAS (AP) -- American Airlines pilots will be flying solo in their quest for a bigger paycheck and job security. They're pitted against management, many of their coworkers, the traveling public and President Clinton.

The aviators, who already are among the highest-paid workers in the nation, say they expect no sympathy and know they'll be isolated in pressing their contract demands.

"They're going into this with their eyes wide open," said union president Jim Sovich. The pilots have been negotiating with American since 1994. This past week, talks dissolved and the pilots declared a strike. The potentially crippling walkout, which could have affected one of every five U.S. air passengers, lasted mere minutes before President Clinton intervened to stop it. The White House action merely postponed the showdown between management and the Allied Pilots Association, which represents about 9,300 American pilots. Now, a Presidential Emergency Board will consider the two sides' arguments. In addition to wages, the dispute revolves around who will fly small jets that American plans to buy to replace turboprops now used on commuter-length flights. The three-member board has 30 days to recommend a settlement. If either side rejects the deal, the pilots can again strike after another 30 days and only Congress can stop them. The pilots' decision to take the contract fight this far has left other American workers stuck in the middle. The flight attendant union, which had its own strike in 1993, is officially supporting the better-paid pilots, who make an average of about $120,000 a year. On the other hand, many members of the Transport Workers Union of American, which represents about 27,000 mechanics, simulator pilots, ground instructors, dispatchers and meteorologists, have been vocally opposed. The Air Lines Pilots Association, which represents turboprop pilots at American Eagle, who average about $35,000 a year, is trying its best to stay neutral. Since ALPA represents the 1,900 pilots at American Eagle, as well as jet pilots from several other major carriers, its membership is seeing both sides of the dispute over who should fly the small commuter jets. APA wants its pilots to fly the 70-100 seat jet, while American parent company, AMR Corp., wants its cheaper American Eagle subsidiary to move into jet cockpits. Capt. Homer Pugh, chairman of the American Eagle union's Executive Council said he recognizes the jet pilots' right to pursue a fair labor contract, but is concerned about rhetoric that may lead some people to question Eagle pilots' qualifications to fly jets. APA officials say the two groups speak informally on a regular basis. Clinton's call for a Presidential Emergency Board is the first made since the Johnson administration. It could change the balance of power in airline labor negotiations. In the past, pilots have had the edge because extensive training and Federal Aviation Administration requirements make it difficult to immediately replace them. That training and the demands of passenger safety are why they earn their salaries, pilots say. "A surgeon can only kill one patient at a time and nobody quibbles with their salaries" said one pilot, who asked that his name not be used. Other major carriers' pilots have been quietly offering their support to American's pilots. Relations between pilots and management throughout the industry have been strained as business booms, since most pilot groups gave concessions during the down years of the early 1990s and now are trying to make up some of the difference. Pilots at United Airlines, Trans World Airlines, Continental Airlines, Northwest Airlines, and USAir are all currently involved in contract talks of some form. They will all have to combat their airlines' attempts to match costs with low-cost carriers in today's deregulated environment. Pilot groups also are watching as commuter operations associated with Alaska Airlines, Continental, Delta, Northwest and United all order small jet aircraft. Wally Pitts, a spokesman for the union, said if American gets its way, the company will probably channel its growth into the smaller jets, depriving his union members of new jobs. That would set a precedent for other airlines, he said. "What we are doing now is setting the benchmark for the rest of the industry for the next 10 years."