Trustee Update – June 6, 2025
Allegiant Pilots,
Negotiations for pilot contracts are historically difficult; you already know that. You’ve also heard that the only way to succeed is by showing unity; broken record. The outliers here, you also know: Trusteeship, Allegiant’s intractable negotiation style, and willingness to exploit its pilots, and a founder “laser focused” on “more for less”. Maurey Gallager saw a “mark” in Robles – it’s clear from emails between him and Robles as well as his letter to shareholders in the 2023 Annual Report. He wrote in part:
“The lack of experience, lack of basic business knowledge was readily apparent. At the bargaining table for the past three years, none of the 2118 representatives (including their legal counsel) had any previous experience at airline labor negotiations. The president of the union was also the head of every committee including the negotiating committee. In three years of negotiation, from early 2021 through the end of 2023, the Company and the union did not agree on any substantive updates to the contract”.
All Allegiant management has done is manipulate, create division, and sit back and wait. An inconceivable “retention bonus” MOU, now worth over 200,000,000, is a time bomb masterfully set by Greg and Maurey.
First days of Trusteeship
For a short time, from March 20 to April 30, 2024, the day after the Trusteeship began to the day I replaced the negotiating team, Allegiant, seemed quite pleased with the progress, as they stated in their letter to the NMB responding to the Union’s proffer request, stating in part:
“… the Union has deliberately prevented the parties from making progress by firing any negotiator who has shown an inclination toward bargaining in good faith toward a new agreement. In the spring of 2024, for example, the Union hired an outside consultant with deep experience in airline negotiations to support the Union’s other negotiators. During that time, the parties were able to work collaboratively and constructively together to address some of the most difficult and complex open issues in our agreement. That abruptly came to an end, however, when Greg Unterseher, the Union’s trustee, fired that consultant and other members of the Union’s bargaining team.”
Fishburn goes on to state the reason why, inaccurately quoting me:
“…that negotiations were “moving too fast…”
John Owens was working behind the union’s back, in constant contact with David Bourne, who was close to Gallagher. The TAs produced in those 40 days were by little more than free-form riffing. There was no context to issues that needed resolution, except by Allegiant’s Negotiations team, who were reportedly surprised by some of the union’s proposals but gladly accepted them.
A sample of TAs and AIPs in those 40 days:
Section 25
Pilot Personal Electronic Device(s) [cell phone monitoring]
“…if the Pilot voluntarily chooses to download a Company application to the Pilot’s personal electronic device(s), that shall constitute the Pilot’s consent to allow the application to track or monitor the Pilot for all purposes.
Section 12
- Involuntary Captain Upgrades
- Voluntary Mutual Domicile Exchange
- Base Seniority
These were proposed by the union, with no regard for the downstream consequences or how they would impact other provisions in the CBA.
Respectfully, I asked the two rank-and-file negotiators to step to the side, and dismissed John Owens the hired lead negotiator brought in by David Bourn. Letter here: GU to JO (link to PDF)
ALPA Drive
Immediately, an ALPA drive rose with a group who internally addressed themselves as the “Super Squad” one, who in a text with an assistant chief pilot, stated that “When I was in the [negotiations] room, June was absolutely doable. Fingers crossed (laughing emoji)” He went on in further texts, as he was seeking ALPA contacts from an ACP, that he had a good chat with Greg [Anderson] about wrapping it and wanting to have a better management/labor relationship.
The only thing “doable” by June was a wholesale acceptance of every proposal presented by (as the “Super Squad” calls them) “expert company negotiators”. The only better “management/labor” relationship being sought looks like a lap dog.
Now, the renewed ALPA drive, as we seek release from mediation. Unwittingly, ALPA is serving as a lever for management. All management needs to do is take a step back, hoping the “Super Squad” will be successful, lending every hand it can, including reportedly granting meetings to ALPA organizers with executive leadership, all the while standing firm on concessionary proposals.
Allegiant management has long sought to influence, if not outright choose, who represented its employees. And by strong preference not have any unions whatsoever, as represented by Allegiant General Counsel, Letter to NMB
GOM
Our job, as representatives, is to, at our core, make and maintain agreements.
The company, in a dispute of its own making, seeks to renege on negotiated terms that protect “Rest” and “Days Off”, express, clear, unambiguous language, using “management rights” as its justification, and unilateral GOM changes as a proxy for negotiations.
To manufacture reasons these new provisions are so important, Allegiant’s attorney, Markel, goes off the rails, inaccurately referencing union counsel, Mr. Ring, stating in part:
“Mr. Ring apparently believes that an airline like Allegiant could not prohibit its pilots from engaging in sexual assault or harassment while on a layover. Airlines have a unique issue at least in that context of what pilots do when they’re on layovers. Mr. Ring thinks that, “Because I’m on a layover, I’m not on a — I’m not on duty. I can do whatever I want. The airline can’t control my time off duty.” By his view, Allegiant could never adopt a policy that says, don’t harass hotel staff in the hotels we’re putting you at, don’t harass the flight attendants you’re working with. You’re off duty. You can do whatever you want. I don’t think we’d have enough paper in this courthouse to print off the arbitration awards upholding terminations of pilots for that exact conduct It’s just so outlandish, it cannot possibly be even entertained.”
Another justification came from Hardesty, stating that a pilot dealing with a bomb threat would not call back on advice from the union. The union Steward who was contacted only informed the pilot that he had access to union counsel and due process. That has always been the case for any pilot involved in an incident and is why you have a badge backer with an emergency hotline, staffed 24/7. For example, recall Captain Sullenberger and his defense by his union representative, Captain Rooney. It’s what union representatives do to protect process and member rights.
There is simply no reality that “operational control” is lost when the company does not have around-the-clock access to you.
Court Transcripts are on the Trustee page.
Trustee Webinar
June 10, 2025 3 PM PST / 6PM EST
Fraternally,
Greg Unterseher
Trustee, APA Teamsters Local 2118