Not to be left out of the “Let Me Show How Stupid I Am” competition (described in earlier blog post below), Continental Pilots take a preemptive strike against the hint of a potential merger:
…unionized pilots from United and Continental said they would not permit a merger of the carriers unless the pilots support the terms of any proposal. “The management teams of United and Continental must understand one hard fact,” the union leaders said. “The pilots of our respective airlines will not allow any merger unless management meets or exceeds our demands to be treated fairly and equitably. “Our concerns will be addressed before we ever agree to allow our airlines to merge.”
Yes, this is productive, folks. The airlines, bolstered by the pilot unions, will continue their constant roller-coaster rides into and out of bankruptcy. Creditors, vendors, lenders, all get pennies on the dollar in these settlements while the poor, mistreated union pilots of the major scheduled carriers earn from $130-250K, working well less than 100 hours per month.
Rant over. Back to your regularly scheduled programming…
