Engage Alert: MEC Pivots to Traditional Section 6 Negotiations

In this breaking Engage Alert, host First Officer Ryan Argenta sits down with MEC Chairman Captain Eric Criswell and Negotiating Committee Chairman Captain Bill Finlay following the MEC’s unanimous decision to pivot away from the accelerated bargaining timeline and toward a more traditional Section 6 negotiation. Criswell and Finlay explain what led to the decision, including the company’s pursuit of concessionary changes to longstanding pilot protections involving reroutes, schedule flexibility, reserve rules, payback days, and other provisions the union says pilots would not ratify. They also discuss the company’s lack of meaningful engagement on key pilot priorities and why the accelerated path ultimately became untenable. With the bargaining strategy now changing, the discussion turns to what comes next: the expected negotiating timeline, the upcoming MEC meeting in Boston, increased communication and pilot involvement and what the MEC and Negotiating Committee will need from the pilot group as negotiations enter a new and potentially longer phase. MEC Alert 26-11: What You Need to Know Negotiators' Notepad 26-03: Status of Negotiations and Next Steps