Vote on Annual AAEM Course and 1 for 1 Agreement May 19th

Tentative Agreement: Annual AAEM Classes Moving Forward at GE

The Union has reached a Tentative Agreement on an annual Advanced Aircraft Engine Mechanic (AAEM) Course for Local 201 members at GE Aerospace. The TA will be voted on at the May 19th membership meeting at 12:30 and 3:30. The Local 201 GE Grievance Board unanimously recommends voting yes on the agreement. 

Read the Tentative Agreement :

AAEM 1-for-1 Agreement Gets an Upgrade

For years, many members worried the R-23 Advanced Aircraft Engine Mechanic (AAEM) classification would have a “fence” put around it. In practical terms, members could not gain the internal experience needed to qualify for upgrade rights into the job classification.  Unless a member already had two years of AAEM experience from another employer, military AAEM experience, or an A&P license, they generally could not upgrade into the position. That is why the Union made sure to negotiate AAEM classes that would give current members minimum qualifications to upgrade when the AAEM classification was negotiated back in 2006.  The class is the only reason there is not a fence. Our Union has been fighting for classes to keep the fence from popping up for over 20 years. Even with our strong seniority system and upgrade supplement, if there is no one internally qualified for the role nothing stops the company from offering every job for which none are internally qualified to the street.  If the Company posted 30 AAEM openings and only three internal candidates met the qualifications, those three positions would go to internal applicants under our seniority and upgrade agreements, while the remaining 27 jobs would be filled from outside the plant. If there were no qualified internal candidates, every opening could be filled from the street. 

Recognizing this issue, the Union negotiated the first internal AAEM training class in 2006, allowing members to gain the minimum qualifications needed for upgrade rights. The Company also maintained a list of qualified employees.

By 2012, that list was nearly exhausted. The Union pushed for another class, but the Company ignored the proposal and instead hired 10 AAEMs from either outside the plant or low-service employees with A&P licenses once the list was exhausted. Thirty higher seniority members filed grievances, and the Union built enough pressure that the Company eventually agreed to create another AAEM training course with National Aviation Academy and to run classes based on interest going forward. In 2017, the membership voted to formally adopt a “1-for-1” agreement. 

Last year, the Company posted dozens of AAEM openings. Any member who had completed the class — or otherwise had upgrade rights and an active application in the upgrade system — should have been offered a position. (If you believe you were overlooked, file a grievance. I do not trust the Company’s recordkeeping.)

Historically, hiring in LATO was much slower. After completing the class, members could wait years for an opening, and at times as many as 71 employees were on the waiting list for 1-for-1 upgrades. Because the Company failed to consistently run enough classes over the years, there was not a large pool of qualified internal candidates ready when the recent hiring surge started. We felt cheated because, had regular classes been offered, more members would have had the opportunity to upgrade during this ongoing hiring push.

To address these concerns, the Negotiating Committee approached the Company and reached a Tentative Agreement, subject to membership ratification.

Key Changes in the Tentative Agreement

1. Annual AAEM Classes

The 2017 agreement did not require the Company to continue offering AAEM classes. In fact, it specifically stated:

“This agreement shall not be interpreted as requiring the Company to hold another training course after the internal list of employees that completed the course has been exhausted.”

If ratified, that language will be removed and replaced with:

“The Company will continue to partner with educational organizations to offer an AAEM course annually, to satisfy demand as internal candidates are exhausted.”

This change is intended to prevent the Company from shutting down the program and building a “fence” around the classification.

2. Tracking 1-for-1 Infringement 

The Company’s position was that once the internal list of qualified candidates was exhausted, nothing in the 2017 agreement prevented them from continuing to hire off the street after an internal list was exhausted, and nothing made them offer another class.  The company’s position is that the 2017 agreement did not mean they “owed” us any internal upgrades after the list was exhausted. 

If ratified, the new agreement will add the following language:

“As hiring continues beyond exhausting internal candidates, the Company agrees to track missed one-for-one opportunities, and offer future positions to qualified internal candidates first, up to a maximum of eight (8). The parties agree to reconvene and further discuss as the maximum missed one-for-one opportunity is reached.”

This language is intended to preserve future upgrade opportunities for internal candidates, even during periods of heavy outside hiring once the internal list has been exhausted.

Take a look at the Tentative Agreement and show up to the membership meeting on May 19th to Vote.   Locking in an annual class keeps those high rated jobs available to the membership.