cloak wrote: ↑Sat Sep 28, 2019 10:53 pm
Not to get too technical, so briefly to an informed observer it seems:
-"Informal" agreement as one not enshrined in a CBA. A good-will gesture, and all good things must come to an end.
-It was not a real "one list" since that would imply a two way flow; rather a "one way flow", something very rare in the market. And usually when things are done a certain way by everyone else, it is for good reasons.
-Likely it was meant to be flow at the first opportunity as opposed to a career growth tool as in delaying to avoid the right seat altogether?
-All ALPA-represented carriers do have flow from their regionals to the bottom of their lists and seniority is governed by date of hire into that bargaining unit. Clearly WestJet and Encore are separate bargaining units. In fact it could be argued that the "one way flow" list came to an end with certification and not so much with a later vote.
-Under the current climate of consolidation forces, it would unlikely that there is much appetite from the corporation for a formal merger of the two companies. It could be argued that possibly having two separate companies is of some appeal for new owners.
Hi cloak,
Thanks for the follow-up. I'll try and clarify a few of your observations:
-There was nothing "informal" about the previous status of the one list. Prior to certification by mainline pilots, as mentioned above, the One List was part of the previous WJPA contract with both Encore and Mainline pilots via an LOU type agreement. When the groups certified, while it was messy and things were in a state of flux, the employment conditions remained the same until there was a new CBA. Therefore, formally, the One List was part of the terms of employment for Encore and Mainline pilots. Indeed, the Kaplan Arbitration award acknowledge the formality of the One List by awarding seniority for all Encore pilots that had flowed since certification up to the date of his award.
-The previous One List was agreed to prior to the formation of Swoop under the previous WJPA contract. It did indeed include a provision with respect to lay-offs and a mechanism for mainline pilots to transfer to Encore. I do not believe any mainline pilot utilized that provision.
I do not wish to (nor am I really at liberty to) engage in a debate about lay-off provisions of the failed LOA or what a new seniority transfer agreement may look at, but it must be stressed that the new mainline CBA contains significantly more robust scope and lay-off protections which, as I've discussed ad nauseam on here, conflicts with the rather simple flow/bumping policy that was previously listed in the 'old' One List. So yes, despite these limitations, it was a "real" one list as it did indeed have two way flow. The failed LOA also contained two-way flow and provisions for mainline pilots to move to positions at Encore.
-While I can't speculate about what purpose was 'likely' with respect to the previous one list, I can comment that the reality is that while most Encore pilots flowed to mainline, there have been a not insignificant number who have deferred flow and remained at Encore - primarily in training, management and ACP roles. Deferring flow was specifically outlined and allowed per the previous One List.
-It doesn't really matter what other ALPA carriers do. WestJet, Swoop and Encore, with flow or not, are following the spirit of the ALPA constitution based on general principles of seniority (i.e. I don't get an upgrade or position ahead of someone else because management may like me more, I get it based on seniority as agreed by unions and the company). So it's up to the Mainline, Swoop and Encore groups to come up with a solution that works for all the pilots in the WestJet Group of Companies.
-There are many interesting discussions and debates going forward on what any type of seniority transfer should look like. Since, to a certain extent, I am involved in those debates I will refrain from commenting publicly on my opinion. What I will emphasize though is that for all the Encore pilots that were on property prior to May 14, 2019 (and those that flowed from Jan 1, 2019), it was part of their contract of employment when they started at Encore that they would flow to mainline and keep their seniority. It wasn't "informal", it wasn't a "goodwill gesture", it wasn't this nice little thing that was just written on a napkin.