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Your AMFA Negotiating Committee met on September 26, 2005 in MSP to prepare for the new rounds of contract negotiations. It was our expectation that after a lengthy break Mesaba would offer us counters to our proposals on the articles owed us from December of 2004. Negotiations reconvened at 9:30 a.m., September 27, 2005, at the Embassy Suites. In attendance for Mesaba were John Spanjers, Cynthia Surrisi, Jaime Nelson, and Bill Poerstel. The Mesaba team consisted of Kevin Wildermuth, Jim Schafer, Nathan Winch, and Neil White. Our new Mediator was Mr. John Livingood. The session began with John Spanjers’ presentation on what Mesaba Airlines is facing today as a result of the Northwest Airlines bankruptcy filing. A confidentiality agreement was presented to the AMFA negotiating team from the company. It is AMFA’s normal procedure that such financial disclosures are presented to the AMFA Administrator for economic modeling purposes. Accordingly, the negotiating team declined to sign the confidentiality agreement with the justification that we do not keep secrets from our membership. The Wednesday negotiating session started at 10 a.m., at which time Mesaba offered their terms for a concessionary contract and announced their intentions to open the previously TA’d articles for consideration of the new terms. These terms include the elimination of the GSE, Maintenance Controller, Maintenance Instructor, and Janitor/Maintenance support classifications from the contract, the reduction of sick time accrual rate with a subsequent increase in the time it takes to begin STD, pay for your own LTD insurance and a decrease in percentage pay from 66 2/3% to 60%. Additionally they are asking for language that includes greater flexibility of farm-out and cross utilization, reduction of wages and Lead and Inspector premiums, deletion of shift premiums, and a reduction of RII pay, elimination of the off schedule lunch penalty, and an elimination of double time pay, even while on mandatory overtime. These are just a few of the terms, and a full list will be provided. Mesaba offered no counterproposals to any of the articles that we are owed from the last negotiating session of December 2004. After a caucus with the 19 observers in attendance, the negotiating team asked questions of Mesaba’s terms from the company’s negotiating team. Once completed, Mesaba listed the TA’d articles that they would like to reopen for discussion. On Thursday, Mesaba presented us with the “target number” of dollar value of concessions that they want and presented us with the new wage scale. The new wage scale is comprised of a 10% wage cut on date of signing and 1% wage increases on the anniversary of the contract for the six-year term of the agreement. The pay scale also has raises set at 18 month intervals instead of the yearly intervals in the current contract. The next negotiating session has been set for November 15th, 16th, and 17th with a noon start on the 15th. This session will also be held in MSP.
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