Airline Division Week In Review - September 7, 2014

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Union Solidarity Paves the Way to Victory as Norwegian Air is denied Waiver  Following a Teamster online petition campaign to keep Norwegian Air International out of the U.S., the Department of Transportation has denied the low-cost carrier’s procedural application to begin transatlantic flights.  “The Teamsters Airline Division applauds the Department of Transportation’s decision to deny Norwegian Air’s application for a temporary waiver to operate in the U.S. Norwegian Air has been dubbed the ‘Wal-Mart of the Skies’ for its relentless pursuit of cheap labor, driving down standards for airline employees and passenger safety,” said Teamsters Airline Division Director Capt. David Bourne.  According to a filing by the DOT, “Because of the extensive record, which reflects the novel and complex nature of this case…the Department does not find that a temporary exemption is appropriate or in the public interest.”  However, industry insiders say that a full application for NAI to operate in the U.S. is still pending and a decision won’t be made until after the November elections.  Although Norwegian in origin, NAI’s race to the bottom includes the registration of its planes in Ireland, hiring pilots in Singapore, and basing its flight crews in Thailand – all to skirt Norwegian labor laws.  “We cannot allow a greedy airline like NAI to fly in the U.S. We call on the DOT to deny NAI’s full application and protect good middle class jobs in the airline industry,” said Bourne.  Piedmont Stock Clerk Negotiations Update  Stock Clerk negotiations commenced this past week at the Company offices in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.  A productive session ensued, with the parties reaching Tentative Agreements on the following contract articles:                    Article 3 – Classifications                  Article 4 - Seniority                  Article 5 - Filling of Vacancies                  Article 7 - Hours of Service                  Article 16- Leaves of Absence  The Union also passed proposals on Expenses and Field Service. The Company expressed a desire to defer to economic discussions and Furlough and Recall, which the Company will also respond to.  Negotiations are scheduled to resume on October 9th.  Airline Industry News Airlines, Industry and Labor  United Airlines recently received its first 787-9 Dreamliner  from Boeing. At 206 feet long, the plane is 20 feet longer than its previous version. United plans to fly the Dreamliner between Los Angeles and Melbourne.   American Airlines announced plans to reassign 47 Bombardier CRJ-700s to PSA Airlines next year. "Consolidating our fleets will lower costs for American Airlines Group and simplify the regional feed for our mainline operations," said Kenji Hashimoto, senior vice president of regional carriers for American.   AAR, a maintenance, repair and operations service provider, said U.S. airlines are bringing home wide-body MRO work from overseas. AAR is building a MRO facility in Rockford, Ill., designed to handle wide-body aircraft such as the Boeing 787.  The union representing USAirways pilots said it has reached a tentative deal on a protocol agreement with the union representing American pilots on a process for seniority integration of the two pilot groups.  United Airlines plans to retire its 50-seat regional jets by next year, instead deploying larger Embraer regional jets that can seat 76 passengers.