Hitting the Ground Running
By Capt. Wes Clapper, ALPA Vice President–Finance/Treasurer
In high school, I took an aptitude test. The results suggested I be a lawyer, accountant, or pilot. I immediately ruled out being a lawyer. I grew up in a small town in central Washington where most folks become laborers or farmers. To become a first-generation pilot seemed insurmountable.
Around my junior year, my brother-in-law’s father took me for a ride in his two-seater Scout. I was hooked. I had my private license before I finished high school and then went to Central Washington University. I minored in business management, keeping that second recommendation in mind, and enrolled in finite mathematics and accounting courses.
When JetBlue joined ALPA in 2014, I got a phone call from Capt. Jim Bigham, the interim Master Executive Council (MEC) chair, asking, “What would you think about being our interim secretary-treasurer?” I said I’d have to think about it and talk with my family. “That’s great,” he replied, “but we’ve already appointed you.” I was flying on upgrade OE when I received the news that I’d become the full-time, elected MEC secretary-treasurer.
Even though I was “voluntold” into the position, I’ve absolutely loved serving our pilots—and it’s allowed me to put my minor to work! At the recent Secretary-Treasurers Conference, I noted that it takes a “different breed” to fill the position. It’s perhaps our union’s most behind-the-scenes job, but also one of its most important.
I ran for the position of vice president–finance/treasurer last year on a platform of change because I believe we can do a lot of things better at the national level for our pilots and volunteers. There was a complete changeover with this officer team. It’s the first time since 1990 that we’ve had all new officers elected together, so in many ways it’s truly a new start.
And we’ve all hit the ground running. At the most recent Executive Council meeting, during which we review resolutions and determine whether to bring them to the Executive Board, we had more than 50 resolutions to consider and discuss.
I lead the Structure, Services, and Finance Review Committee, which was stood up in 2018 and tasked with how to better spend our pilots’ dues money, how to get more people involved in volunteering, and to bring our spending limits and restrictions up to date.
The Executive Board will be voting on several of the committee’s recommendations. Many of them are updating financial limits that haven’t been increased in decades. We added language to these recommendations that mandates an annual adjustment based on the Consumer Price Index in order to stay current.
We’re looking at ways local councils can use their funds less restrictively. Currently, many councils can’t spend their money to meet the needs of their pilots due to outdated policy.
Additionally, we’re recommending allowing members to pay any dues reconciliations online rather than by check or through a bank account if an airline doesn’t have an Arrangement Plan Checkoff.
Our overarching goal is to update our policies so they’re more applicable to today’s world and easier for your leaders to fulfill their duties and responsibilities and serve you.
Going forward, I’ll be tasking the group to review “duesable” income as it relates to retirement funds—funds earmarked for retirement returned to a pilot in cash because of government-imposed limits and the current practice of charging dues on them. Ultimately, pilot groups should be striving to achieve other retirement-funding vehicles in their contracts.
It’s an exciting time to be an airline pilot and ALPA member. Pilots today have more opportunities and a brighter future than any generation before them. They can choose where they want to start their career, and most will have their choice of which major to fly for. With the successes of pattern bargaining, contracts are such that a pilot can make a career at just about any airline. And that’s due in no small part to the work of ALPA over the past generation.
I look forward to working with this officer team for the next three and a half years and seeing what we can accomplish. And I encourage ALPA members to get involved. Participate in your local meetings, volunteer, or find someone to mentor and give back to the next generation. As great as ALPA is today, together we can make it even greater.
