The following statement was issued today by Steve MacFarlane, president of Local 33 of the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association, in response to Northwest's allegation that the airline's lower position in the latest on-time rankings was due to ``an illegal work action'' by mechanics:
Whenever the on-time rankings news is bad, Northwest's first instinct is to blame its own employees instead of taking responsibility for not putting the right contingencies in place. Do we need to remind Northwest of the terrible weather that recently savaged schedules in the airline's two largest northern hubs, Minneapolis-St. Paul and Detroit? Or about skyrocketing air traffic volumes and the overcrowded Air Traffic Control System? Or about the shortage of mechanics that often forces us to work repeated overtime shifts to the point of exhaustion and beyond? Northwest needs to do a much better job of planning for predictable contingencies. Next time, don't blame the hard-working mechanics who have been putting in long hours without a new contract to keep Northwest operations functioning.
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/010119/mn_amfa.html