August 24, 2018
Dear AMFA–SWA Members:
One of the strong messages we discussed at each station during our Tentative Agreement (TA) Roadshow was to be on the lookout for Company messages taking the following form:
“If you vote no and this TA is rejected, then [something bad] will occur.”
We could not have predicted the Company’s resort to scare-tactics any better. On August 20, just three days before the vote was set to begin, the Company sent you a document entitled “Get the Facts!” The very first item thrown in your face in that document was a threat that negotiations will not resume quickly if the TA is rejected.
It is apparent the Company had no choice but to resort to blatant scare-tactics once word of the solidarity created by our roadshow began to circulate. Our financial expert, Peter Manikowski, provided you with nothing but the facts as it relates to the substandard economics of this deal – and those facts speak volumes.
As the vote begins, it is important to remember the following points explained at length by our economist in the roadshow:
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The snap-up and new amendable date makes the base wage fall well short of your previous base wage trajectory;
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The top-of-scale, all-in pay for our group will be third or fourth best amongst all passenger carriers by Q1 of 2019;
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The fact that Southwest refused to reward our group for its industry-leading productivity as part of this TA is very concerning to both your Committee and the large majority of members we spoke to during the roadshow.
A picture is worth a thousand words. In this instance, the following chart developed by our economist and explained at length during the roadshow demonstrates exactly why Southwest cannot be rewarded for intentionally dragging out negotiations only to refuse to compensate you appropriately for your worth:
This contract represents eleven years of our lives, and it is in no way out of line for all of us to expect to be rewarded for our efforts in the success of this carrier. Southwest has never had a better economic environment to reward our group than they have today, and as such we cannot accept this mediocre TA.
We want to thank all of our AMFA brothers and sisters that attended the roadshow, asked questions, and expressed appreciation for the straightforward material we provided. We were humbled by your appreciation, and our solidarity as a group has never been greater.
Please do not hesitate to contact your AMFA representatives if you have additional questions.
Sincerely,
Your Negotiating Committee