How AMFA is Changing the Industry

By: Clacy Griswold, International Representative for the Teamsters Airline Division 

More and more airlines are expressing their desire to send their aircraft out of the country for maintenance work. Airlines with labor contracts are mostly prohibited from further international outsourcing, but one labor organization, the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association, has been single-handedly changing the industry by granting international outsourcing agreements at the carriers they represent. This is an erosion of the craft and class, and has led to a big decrease in the safety and security of our nation’s aircraft.

It started with Alaska Airlines when that carrier shut down all heavy maintenance and transferred much of that work to El Salvador.

At Northwest Airlines, AMFA was unable to prevent that carrier from its decision to send its entire fleet of 747’s to China for maintenance. Since the failed strike, even more aircraft are now outsourced out of the country.

Next in line was United Airlines, where the AMFA made agreement with the carrier to allow Boeing 747 and 777 aircraft heavy maintenance visits out of the country. The company subsequently took advantage of this arrangement and began sending C-checks out of the country as well.

Southwest Airlines (SWA) has now asked AMFA for permission to send four lines of maintenance to El Salvador, to be transferred from domestic OSV’s. Incomprehensibly, but with no surprise, the AMFA is negotiating with that carrier to give them permission. According to their negotiations update (which is on the AMFA web site) they are willing to give this up in order to keep existing work (already contractually protected), and to gain a union position that will work with maintenance planning. They are attempting to manipulate their membership by making the gains sound better than the losses.

For this minimal gain, they continue to shape the industry by making international outsourcing a viable and financially lucrative option for carriers.

The AMFA is well aware that maintenance performed in El Salvador is of substandard quality, yet they seek to craft an agreement to send aircraft there anyway. In April of 2005, AMFA’s attorney, Lee Seham was quoted:  "If 'pencil-whipping' happens in the USA, you can imagine what happens in the context of authoritarian regimes where a growing share of aircraft maintenance is being performed," Seham said. "You cannot pretend that a Chinese aircraft technician, or one in El Salvador, for that matter, has any choice but to do what he is told."(See:

http://www.citypages.com/databank/26/1272/article13199.asp )

The Teamsters had created the SWA mechanics’ agreement from scratch. Much of SWA maintenance was already farmed out when the Teamsters became certified as the mechanics’ representative. The language that was developed maintained the work that was already in house, and prevented work from being moved to an international location. Some of the outsourced work was even brought in house. It is interesting to note that the AMFA did not change a word of that language when the contract became amendable and instead opted for an extension. They are now, in fact, considering another company offered extension in lieu of going into Section 6 negotiations.

The Teamsters have not allowed an increase in international outsourcing at the carriers they represent. The international outsourcing that does exist at Teamster represented carriers was already in place when they became the representative. At Continental Airlines, approximately 20 percent of the work and 400 jobs have been brought back in house, the furlough list has been exhausted, and new mechanics have been hired!

The Teamsters Aviation Mechanics Coalition has taken on the fight against international outsourcing, and has made the commitment to fight it at all levels of the union, from top to bottom. This is something that will benefit the entire industry. However, the AMFA is a big obstacle to this fight as they are taking the industry down the path of ever increasing international outsourcing. This is one of the major reasons why the AMFA needs to be replaced at United Airlines. When it comes time to vote, vote Teamsters to help save your jobs and your industry.