Recently, I came across a letter that a friend of mine had written to American Airlines management responding to a comment that was made during an interview with Bloomberg News referring to labor as bricks in a backpack. The upper management person being interviewed was a senior VP with American Airlines that had served for less than ten years.  Just as you can imagine, his statement alluded to how bricks in a backpack are heavy and would weigh you down.

The definition of a brick, however, depicts quite a different picture than what was portrayed by this executive. Merriam-Webster defines a brick as “a handy sized unit of building.” Bricks are used to lay down the foundation of great buildings or walls. Many brick buildings have stood decades and even centuries, enduring all kinds of weather and fires. Some plantation homes still stand today because of bricks.

Most of us that have been with Southwest Airlines or Alaska Airlines have dedicated many years of service in our craft to help grow the companies to where they are today. In addition, we have also made sacrifices to help the companies grow strong. Even day-to-day situations that may seem trivial like working in extreme heat, cold, wind, snow, or rain, are ways we help the companies succeed.

Many of the work rule changes that our carriers are trying to go after in our contract are ones that we have enjoyed for a long time - in good times and in bad.  Why must there be these changes that would drastically affect our working conditions? What I am getting at is that the Collective Bargaining Agreement that we live by now has not harmed the company, yet the changes that they propose will harm us. I have heard too many times from people that some of these changes don’t affect them - wrong, these changes affect all of us!

Labor is in fact a brick used to build a great company. In which, a BRICK is a basic element to a foundation. This is very appropriate because without great labor, the foundation of a company will crumble.

“Labor is prior to, and independent of, capital. Capital is only the fruit of labor, and could never have existed if labor had not first existed.  Labor is the superior of capital, and deserves much the higher consideration”—Abraham Lincoln

Remain AMFA Strong!

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