TWO AMERICAS; TWO DELTAS

COUNTRY MIRED IN A MORASS OF DEBT
HEY DICK, WHAT’S YOUR HURRY?

The country and indeed, the world are in trouble. The economies of the world are inextricably linked and one country’s economic peril soon delivers its bad news to all of us. There is a spreading global recession that is lessening consumer demand for all commodities and stock markets and economies are crashing almost simultaneously.

There is a fear in America that this downturn could be lasting and a decline in accumulated wealth could occur and be permanent. This is a global economic crisis that will affect our airline business for quite some time and the demand for travel will most certainly retreat and remain soft for a considerable amount of time.

Over the last few months the stock market has lost over 8 trillion dollars of value. We are cycling down in America and all around the world.

Banks, mortgage lenders and mega insurance entities are not lending money and have their hands out to governments around the globe begging for capital. Billions have been allocated to these financial institutions and it seems to not be enough.

Meanwhile, individual homeowners and borrowers are also hurting but are not having as much luck receiving any help, you see; there are two Americas. Fat cats and Wall Street movers and shakers; the same people who put us in this mess are being taken care of first. Everyone says that they are too big to fail. The rest of us have so far been left behind and have to fend for ourselves.

On the Delta front everything is in flux. The hub in CVG that received promises it would remain intact is set for major cuts. SLC is about to announce more flight reductions and Richard Anderson wants the unions who are trying to organize Delta departments to hurry up and file with the NMB for early elections. What’s the rush, Dick?

Perhaps the promises you have made about no employee reductions is a promise this economy will not allow you to keep. Maybe you can see what we see; that reductions in workforce next year are inevitable. Maybe those union contracts that protect seniority and allow for sane and fair manpower reductions are an impediment to you moving swiftly and coldly in removing people?

Doing away with the contracts, should we lose a union vote would allow Richard Anderson to rearrange and remove the ratios to full and part-time numbers in former Northwest hubs. Taking away movement and bumping rights would allow Delta management to protect certain cities from the movement of displaced employees in cities and hubs that might have to have reductions.

The use of ready-reserves could be greatly expanded and part-time benefited employees would most certainly become an endangered species.

There are also two Deltas. There are those of us who have been suffering financially while our contract employees (Pilots and Delta Corporate Officers) are making out quite well. The pilots and top 700 executives received over two thirds of the equity that was disbursed while the bulk of the employees (65,000) split up the other third. Our corporate officers have received millions. Check out the DeltaNet. Click on Yahoo Finance and then check out insider transactions. You won’t believe how much they are taking.


The only way to protect ourselves from the coming storm is to organize and unionize. When we vote we need to know and be sure of a victory. A loss would most certainly cost more jobs and cause those of us left to suffer immeasurable reductions in benefits and pay. Let’s vote; let’s vote to win.