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Air line Pilots Association (ALPA)


Self Description

February 2007: "The Air Line Pilots Association, International (ALPA) is the largest airline pilot union in the world and represents 60,000 pilots who fly for 40 U.S. and Canadian airlines. Founded in 1931, the Association is chartered by the AFL-CIO and the Canadian Labour Congress. Known internationally as US-ALPA, it is a member of the International Federation of Air Line Pilot Associations. 

ALPA provides three critical services to its members: 

  • Airline Safety and Security: ALPA's founders chose "Schedule with Safety" as their motto, and that theme remains central to the union's work today. Over its 70 years, ALPA has been a part of nearly every significant safety improvement in the airline industry. The Association has helped to make airline travel the safest mode of transportation in human history. More than 600 working airline pilots volunteer to serve on the local and national safety and security committees that help guide the Association's work. The union's aeronautics engineers and safety and security experts provide unparalleled independent analysis on emerging airline safety and security issues, as well as federal and industrial policies. ALPA is routinely granted "interested party" status in most major airline accidents, which means that ALPA accident investigators assist the National Transportation Safety Board and the Transportation Safety Board of Canada during on-site investigations and participate in associated public hearings. The union's commitment to unbiased, fact-based evaluation of airline safety and security issues has won the Association an unrivaled reputation for excellence throughout the airline industry. 
  • Representation: Over the decades, ALPA pilot groups have negotiated scores of contracts with hundreds of airlines. Today, ALPA staff offers its members the finest financial analysis available, in-depth knowledge of the Railway Labor Act (the legislation that governs airline pilot contracts), and the legal experience to defend pilot contracts. By leveraging the combined resources of all union members, ALPA is able to bring unmatched expertise to bear on matters affecting its members' salary, benefits, and working conditions. 
  • Advocacy: ALPA's staff and pilot volunteers consistently represent pilots' views to all airline industry decision-makers, including Congress, Parliament, the White House, and federal agencies. In Washington, D.C. and Ottawa, Ont., ALPA lobbyists successfully promote legislation that helps pilots and work to stop policies that harm pilot interests. National officers and pilot representatives are routinely called on to give their expert opinion before legislative committees and other influential governmental bodies."
http://www.alpa.org/?tabid=139

Third-Party Descriptions

January 2007: "The Airline Pilots Association, the largest pilots' union, fought the mandatory retirement age until the early 1980s -- about the time that government deregulated airlines and a flood of young pilots hit the market."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/30/AR2007013001654.html

Relationships

RoleNameTypeLast Updated
Member of (past or present) AFL-CIO Organization Feb 1, 2007

Articles and Resources

Date Fairness.com Resource Read it at:
Aug 26, 2009 Debate on lithium batteries reignites

QUOTE: Pilots are calling for a ban on all lithium-based battery shipments on passenger and cargo jets.

 USA TODAY
Jan 31, 2007 FAA to Raise Retirement Age for Pilots: After Battle, Cutoff to Change From 60 to 65 Within Two Years

QUOTE: The Airline Pilots Association, the largest pilots' union, fought the mandatory retirement age until the early 1980s -- about the time that government deregulated airlines and a flood of young pilots hit the market. Because everything in a pilot's life is affected by seniority -- better shifts, better planes and better routes come with more experience -- the younger pilots did not want many of the older ones to keep flying.

 Washington Post