Release #: HAL 16.10
August 23, 2016

Hawaiian Airlines Pilots Will Open Strike Operations Center Sept 14

HONOLULU— Hawaiian Airlines pilots, represented by the Air Line Pilots Association, Int’l, will open a Strike Operations Center (SOC) near Honolulu International Airport on September 14, 2016, the first anniversary of their contract becoming amendable.

The opening of the strike center means the pilot group will have all preparations in place to immediately stop flying should the National Mediation Board (NMB) establish and the parties exhaust a legally required 30-day cooling-off period prior to any pilot strike or lockout. ALPA has asked the Board to release the pilots from mediation, proffer arbitration, and then start the cooling-off period.

“We will run all our strike operations from our ALPA SOC, including phone banking, tracking aircraft movements, and coordinating travel home for our members wherever they may be in the world when a strike takes place,” said Capt. Hoon Lee, chairman of ALPA’s Hawaiian Master Executive Council. “We still hope we can reach an agreement with the company, but we are prepared for any eventuality.”

ALPA’s five-year contract with Hawaiian became amendable on September 14, 2015. The two sides have been in contract talks for more than 15 months and are still far apart on economic issues.

“It’s become clear to us that Hawaiian management will not work as hard as they need to reach agreement until the NMB gives them a firm deadline,” Lee said.

Founded in 1931, ALPA is the world’s largest pilot union, representing more than 54,000 pilots at 31 airlines in the United States and Canada. Visit the ALPA website or follow us on Twitter @WeAreALPA.

[Editors & Broadcasters: ALPA will hold a media open house the day of the SOC opening. More details will be provided closer to the opening date.]

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CONTACT: ALPA Media, 703-481-4440 or Media@alpa.org