Is ALPA really a democratic organization? Some of the loudest complainers believe that it is controlled by small groups of people in far-off places who don’t understand their own problems. The fact is, ALPA’s structure is best illustrated by an upside-down pyramid, with the membership at the top supported by their elected representatives, committees, and staff.

The ultimate authority is in the hands of the line pilots, who can elect (and recall) their local executive council representatives. Each LEC is made up of a Captain rep and a First Officer rep, as well as a Secretary/Treasurer. Your LEC Captain and First Officer representatives constitute the US Airways Master Executive Council. They are listed in this magazine’s center pages, along with their addresses and phone numbers. Also listed there are the members of all MEC committees and subcommittees.

As you can see in the organizational pyramid, the MEC and its committees lie below the pilots, but above all segments of ALPA’s national structure. The pilot group and its MEC, while supported by ALPA’s broader structure, is to a large degree autonomous. The MEC makes its own decisions on everything up to and including our Contract. Major issues, such as the Contract, are ultimately submitted back to you for ratification.

The MEC’s autonomy is limited to some extent by ALPA’s Constitution and Bylaws, as well as by resolutions passed by the ALPA Board of Directors. However, the Board of Directors is made up of the very same local pilots whom you directly elect as your LEC reps.

Each MEC elects a chairman, vice chairman, and secretary/treasurer to conduct the day-to-day business of the pilot group and the MEC. The chairmen from all the MECs make up the Executive Board, which deals with the general management and business affairs of the Association.

The Board of Directors elects 12 National officers. The president, first vice president, vice president administration/secretary, and vice president-finance/treasurer serve four-year terms. Eight executive vice presidents are elected to two-year terms under a system which ensures that every size carrier is represented. These 12 officers make up ALPA’s Executive Council, which administers the business of the Association and carries out Board of Directors and Executive Board decisions.

During last October’s biennial Board of Directors meeting, US Airways pilot John Feldvary, previously our executive vice president, was elected to serve as vice president-finance/treasurer. David Morrow, our former MEC vice chairman, was elected as our new executive vice president.

Many other US Airways pilots (also listed on this magazine’s center pages) serve on various ALPA National committees. You can be sure that you are served and represented by your fellow US Airways pilots at every level of the Association.

Your LEC representatives are US Airways pilots who understand you because they fly the line beside you. As your reps, they literally work for you. You can talk with them on the phone, discuss issues face to face, and attend local executive council meetings where you, the line pilot, can offer resolutions to directly affect ALPA policies and decisions. They are more than willing to carry your opinions to the MEC, where they present them and consider them conscientiously in their decision-making processes.

If you don’t believe this, come to an MEC meeting yourself and observe the diversity of opinions avidly expressed by your representatives. You will see that every domicile, every segment of the seniority list, and every interest is represented, usually quite passionately. We strongly encourage you not only to attend these meetings, but also to address the MEC on any subject you choose. Time is set aside for any US Airways ALPA members in good standing to do this at 9:30 a.m. on the first Tuesday of each quarterly meeting.

Since your LEC reps sit on the ALPA Board of Directors, talking with them puts you into immediate contact with the group that has the authority to set ALPA National policies and to modify the Constitution and Bylaws. They are as near as your telephone and sometimes as close as the seat next to you in the cockpit.

A democratic organization can’t be successful without the faith and understanding of its members. However, its strength and health also depend on the willingness of its members to get involved in its processes. All of the power of ALPA resides in its line pilots because you are the ones who can elect the LEC reps and affect policies through active involvement in the Union’s work. If ALPA is ever weak or ineffective, it is because its members neglect to exercise their power at the local level.

If you are willing to complain about any aspect of ALPA, you should be willing, as a minimum, to participate in LEC meetings. Unfortunately, very few pilots do. Fewer still attend the MEC meetings. If you want to do more, become active in committee work or stand for election to an office. The opportunities for involvement are practically unlimited. All you have to do to begin to change things is to call your LEC rep, the MEC office, or a committee chairman.

Will your involvement guarantee that your LEC resolution will become ALPA National policy? No, of course it won’t, because not everyone thinks the same way you do. However, your getting involved greatly increases the odds that your point of view will be strongly represented at all levels of the Association.

By participating in the union’s processes, of course, you may find yourself face to face with others who strongly hold an opposing point of view. If you fail to get involved, you are, in effect, handing over to them the authority to make the critical decisions that determine the course of your career. That is the nature of democracy.