The Air Line Pilots Association is suing low-cost carrier Breeze Airways for allegedly bargaining in bad faith and working to undermine the union as the legitimate representative of its pilots.
In a complaint filed in federal court in Utah, where Breeze is based, ALPA accused the carrier’s management of violating the Railway Labor Act by obstructing negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement.
Breeze’s pilots joined ALPA in 2022 and have been negotiating for their first collective bargaining agreement since early 2023.
Attorneys representing ALPA said Breeze is strongly opposed to the unionization of its pilots and is using different methods to obstruct the organization and undermine its position as the pilots’ legitimate representative. These tactics allegedly include bargaining without any real intent to reach a deal; disregarding agreements reached with ALPA; creating non-ALPA pilot committees; dealing directly with employees rather than through the union; implementing policies and practices without bargaining with ALPA; and repeatedly denigrating ALPA.
“Breeze leadership has said that the purpose of all its bad-faith conduct is to push ALPA’s Breeze unit to de-certify,” the lawsuit states.
“We were surprised and disappointed to learn of ALPA’s filing,” the carrier said in a statement to AirlineGeeks on Tuesday. “The claims outlined do not reflect the reality of our negotiations with ALPA and unnecessarily distract from our shared goal: to create a safe, enjoyable, and rewarding workplace for our team members. We remain fully committed to negotiating in good faith in order to reach an agreement that benefits our pilots and supports Breeze’s long-term success.”
The budget carrier was formed eight years ago and began operations in 2021. It is headed by airline entrepreneur David Neeleman, who ALPA said harbors clear “anti-union animus.”
According to the lawsuit, Neeleman has derided ALPA in comments to employees and appears at new pilot orientations to “chill” union participation.
In 2022, before Breeze’s pilots had formally joined ALPA, the CEO allegedly asked Captain Alex Kluge, now the Breeze Master Executive Committee chair, to give him time to demonstrate that the pilots did not need a union to represent them.
“Breeze’s sustained pattern of bad faith bargaining and undermining of the pilots’ union under CEO David Neeleman has deprived our pilots of the rights guaranteed under the RLA, making today’s legal action both necessary and unavoidable,” Kluge said in a statement on Tuesday.
ALPA also criticized Breeze for allegedly making it difficult for member pilots to participate in union functions, stonewalling on certain issues, and failing to respond to union proposals with at least counterproposals.
“The company’s position that it is free to ignore what it has agreed to in negotiations pending a final CBA undermines the stability of labor relations at Breeze as well as both the bargaining process and the association, as it signals to Breeze pilots that ALPA is ineffective,” the lawsuit states.
