Too many union concessions in the airline industry?

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Link to Article at TheStreet.com

Pilots Offer $660 M in Concessions to American Airlines

Between the pilots' union and the flight attendants' union, $1 B has been offered to American Airlines in concessions. Is that too much? Are the unions giving away the store?

And even though the unions are handing over these kinds of extensive concessions, thousands of jobs are still being cut. Airline stocks are tanking. See: Second Street Article

What should a responsible union president do? Hand out the concessions? Participate in the layoffs so as to exert some control? Urge his/her people to take massive pay cuts or cut hours? Work to get union members training in some other industry and abandon the airline industry altogether? Hang around with management and wait for a governmental bail-out?

What would you do? How would you save jobs now but still hold onto some leverage (even if it was very little leverage) after the end of the financial crisis? Can you balance both without incurring the wrath of union members and management?

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jespah, It's seems quite simple to me; give concessions or lose your job. Bankruptcy will not save jobs. Concessions might. c.i.

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I'm sure that's true, I'm just wondering what kind of a position the unions will be in once the economy turns around (whenever the heck that happens). Have they permanently crippled themselves?

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Unions have been crippled for quite a while. I think most non-union shops don't want the union, because many fear for their jobs more than the benefits the union might bring about. With overseas competition in most products, I think unions are going to be a thing of the past. I'm surprised at how strong the dockworkers union remains to this day. They sure created a big mess last year with their strike. Most of the dockworkers only have a high school education, but they earn more than people with college degrees. I think the top pay is about $125,000. c.i.

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Too many union concessions in the airline industry?

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