Lockheed Strike

ecsduct · by **ecsduct** » 04 May 2012, 21:49

Myself and several other Al Dhafra LM alumni have finally been getting our UAE follow-ons this spring, mostly with 16 and 35 program at Edwards, Eglin, and Pax. Now, right after we've all checked out toolboxes and hooked up com-cords, the IAM in Fort Worth says we're on strike.

...um... oooooookay....

Look, I am far from being a LM 'flag waver'. The management of this corporation is as lying, cheating, and back-stabbing as the next. BUT- having experienced quite a bit of the other military, airline, and defense industry aviation opportunities available elsewhere, Lockheed isn't really that bad, relatively speaking. With the economy the way it is right now, shouldn't we be grateful for what we've got? Rather than spending everything we've made overseas on rent for the next year while picketing.

Don't get me wrong, I am 100% supportive of the guys out here at Gate 3. But, for those of us who sweated through those 120 degree summers for a year or more to finally get on with 16 flight test or JSF, then being told a few weeks later we're out of a job for the forseeable future, what are we supposed to do now? Apply for unemployment?

All right... Let the union issue back and forth begin. Anything helpful, besides discourse and rancor?

(rolling up the cord and pushing my box back to the AMU)

discofishing · by **discofishing** » 04 May 2012, 23:07

What's the strike over again?

ecsduct · by **ecsduct** » 06 May 2012, 23:49

Same as every other company right now, pensions & health care. LM wants to cease their in-house plans and contract everything out to flex plans and 401Ks. I agree with the IAM this is not good, and as I said I'm definitely not one of the flag wavers hanging around the office hoping to get another 'coin'. But most other companies are doing far worse things right now.

I've talked to some of the picketers and read their website material. I was just hoping some of the wildly positive LM posters we constantly see on here all the time could toss in a few cents without all the corporate speak about 'team building' and 'customer service'. We fix airplanes, not stock options. I believe in a good work ethic, but I'm not sure if striking right now won't do more harm than good. My loyalty is to my skill, coworkers, and safety, not profits. Profits just pay the bills.

(waiting in line at the counter to turn in my pump handle & bunny suit)

SaulGood2021 · by **SaulGood2021** » 07 May 2012, 11:04

Here at Eglin, we have nothing to do with the union...

fiskerwad · by **fiskerwad** » 07 May 2012, 13:08

ecsduct wrote:Same as every other company right now, pensions & health care. LM wants to cease their in-house plans and contract everything out to flex plans and 401Ks. I agree with the IAM this is not good, and as I said I'm definitely not one of the flag wavers hanging around the office hoping to get another 'coin'. But most other companies are doing far worse things right now.

I've talked to some of the picketers and read their website material. I was just hoping some of the wildly positive LM posters we constantly see on here all the time could toss in a few cents without all the corporate speak about 'team building' and 'customer service'. We fix airplanes, not stock options. I believe in a good work ethic, but I'm not sure if striking right now won't do more harm than good. My loyalty is to my skill, coworkers, and safety, not profits. Profits just pay the bills.

(waiting in line at the counter to turn in my pump handle & bunny suit)

You got here too late, ecs, LM hasn't been in the airplane business for years. GD built airplanes, for a year as Lockheed they built airplanes, when Martin merged with Lockheed, they stopped being about airplanes.

The big slide started with the failed A-12 program when Bill Anders was given the job of driving the stock price up so the Crown family could cash in their holdings. Anders held a fire sale of the corporation's companies that weren't "core" to the corporation. FW division was over 50% of corporate profit so it was the company worth the most. Since Anders wasn't interested in the corporation's future, GD/FW was history.

Company match of employee savings went from a dollar match to 50 cents on the dollar paid with company stock. As a friend of mine pointed out, when a company starts printing their own money, watch out. From that point on, the bean counter/wall street traders were running the company.

I hope the history lesson wasn't too boring but it gives you an idea of how we got where we are. I don't see the union winning this one which means the salaried folks are next as union agreements drive the bennies for them.
Best of luck.
fisk

exfltsafety · by **exfltsafety** » 07 May 2012, 13:49

fiskerwad wrote:I don't see the union winning this one which means the salaried folks are next as union agreements drive the bennies for them.
Best of luck.
fisk

Salaried new hires lost their pensions several years ago. And the salaried employee cost of healthcare increases every year.

discofishing · by **discofishing** » 07 May 2012, 19:37

What is the make up of this union? For instance, is it 70% skilled people versus 30% unskilled? Can unskilled and skilled workers even be in the same union at all?

ecsduct · by **ecsduct** » 08 May 2012, 00:39

I was afraid of that. I do appreciate hearing from other 'normal' mechanics, as it seems nowadays everyone is either a permanent grin or a definite downer. I suppose I'll just hang around for a few weeks, then look for something else. I just don't understand why LM seemed to suddenly begin hiring like crazy this Spring, if they knew this was coming up? Were we supposed to be scabs?

Weird. A year after the UAE I couldn't even get my e-mails returned, then suddenly had 4 offers to choose from. I guess I should have taken the Eglin slot, if they're not affected by this...

(walking out to the parking lot, head hung low)

fiskerwad · by **fiskerwad** » 08 May 2012, 03:04

Never stop looking for your next job, ecs. If this one works out, OK, but it's not the only game in town. Eglin is just a house of cards right now, probably not a good place to be until they get it sorted out, if ever.
fisk

ecsduct · by **ecsduct** » 08 May 2012, 17:38

Interesting what you say about Eglin, that's exactly the impression I got from the phone interview, which I why I chose something else. The Edwards gig sounded nice, but just too darn far away, and I've done that desert stuff to death for one lifetime.

A couple other options on the table I've been back-burner-ing. We'll see.

(driving out the gate and honking to the picketers, thumbs up)

Oh, and I'm not an ECS troop, 100% mechanic. That refers to a gentle debate I won at Al Dhafra about changing the JFS fuel filter. Buddy said he could do it without pulling that duct right in front on it, the one you have to go through the wheel well and engine bay to turn. Um, yeah, until he dropped a bolt behind the ADG, and I had to spend all of a night shift with a borescope & mech fingers to save us a gearbox change. (whew)

Hmm, I'm usually in the hangar, though, not the flightline. Guess I'm not a 'hard core' crew chief. (grin)

juvat67 · by **juvat67** » 11 May 2012, 22:24

Lockheed mechs on strike? Wow, amazing. I know when I worked for Greenville, that when the contract was over, so was the loyalty from Lockheed. As a CLS person, you did not have as nice as benefits as the AERO people, and you accepted that, but I was hoping that the company would have had a little more loyalty to you, especially if you had a good performance report. Not such the case. If anything that can come out of the strike I would hope for all those overseas that are on the contract that LM would show loyalty toward its sustainment employees by securing some position for them, especially in this economy, and provide preferential positioning over throwing you into the deep end, or out of the company. It would be a novel idea that would instill more loyalty from the employees. BTW, NEVER, EVER work for the Johnstown group, and the IPV program. Their leadership is pretty corrupt and backstabbing, and yes I am bitter still.

ecsduct · by **ecsduct** » 12 May 2012, 01:17

That's exactly what I'm talking about. Thanks for putting it so well! I worked for Lockheed as a contractor for 6 months with GE Jet, then got on 'permanent' (I thought) with the 16/60 at Al Dhafra. 18 months and a lot of sweat & work ethic later, all I got was a plane ticket back to point of origin, standing there with my dufffel bags at curbside. Wow, thanks a @#$%ing lot, there, LM...

All we ever heard at the 'all hands' was about finding a spot for us. Um, yeah, right. I realize it's just a paycheck, I know other companies are worse, but then I read all the 'LM is heaven' stuff on here and just shake my head.

Now, supposing this thing ends reasonably soon, and we all go back before finding other jobs. What kind of attitude would YOU have towards a company like this? Out of several dozen managers I've met here in two years, I've known ***two*** I respect and trust. And the second I value the most, because he saw me in the line hangar many, many a night the last one there still working after the rest of the base was completely empty.

And yet, most of the workers here are some of the best people I've ever known, professionally...

(staring at the cell phone and mailbox, wondering what to do next)

Oh, and I was a Juvat in 93. A-Town was still going strong, and I've heard it's still up even today! I wonder how the DOD gets away with legalized prostitution for it's enlisted corps overseas...? You'd think MSNBC would be screaming their heads off. (grin)

F31CrewDawg · by **F31CrewDawg** » 12 May 2012, 12:48

Got you trumped--I was at the Kun in 1976 and that was the no shiiter era. Was there as Juvat in 93 and it sucked the big one. A-town was nothing. Pls tell me ur being sarcastic (grin). DOD is not gettin away with anything--A Town is a Korean township now, governed by its own laws--matter of fact more Koreans frequent it then yanks. Its already bad enuff in the new bottled water Air Forc-lets just make everything illegal. geez laweez

ecsduct · by **ecsduct** » 12 May 2012, 21:02

Wolf Pack in 1976?!? WOW! I heard how off the rail, hook, track, and out of the box it was back then. I also missed the PI for Cope T, we were the first ones stuck out in the boonies at Eileson, after the volcano leveled Clark. Fairbanks had... two? strip clubs, and one was out in the middle of nowhere.

Oh well, us youngsters can still idolize you oldsters. However, lame as A.T. had become, relatively speaking, it was still better than that @#$%hole NCO club on base. Or stumbling around Kunsan City in the dark, being chased by the T.P. around the marketplace...

(wondering why all that chem gear doesn't impress LM) :cheers:

"Bottled water AF" - LOL! What a perfect way to descibe it now. I left at 10 years, met guys in the UAE my age who had stayed in 20. Said when we all left during the Clinton cutbacks we "broke the AF's back". I say GOOD.

F31CrewDawg · by **F31CrewDawg** » 13 May 2012, 15:36

Yeah, ecsduct-those were the days. But I guess things have to change. Couldnt have stayed like that--weapons troops driving their jammers with shoulder length hair tucked under their hat. It was out of control. BTW I was a TMO geek, freight traffic to be exact during the 76 era. We worked 3 months straight receiving Korat air base which was shipped to Pusan and then railroaded up to the 'Kun'. Worked hard-partyed hard. Cheers