The announcement of the proposed merger between American Airlines—now in bankruptcy proceedings—and US Airways has drawn mixed reactions from the AFL-CIO unions, which represent workers at both airlines.

In New Orleans this Super Bowl week, there are plenty of fans sporting 49ers' red and gold caps and jerseys and Ravens' purple and black gear. But there also are thousands of union members—including many from unions in the Greater New Orleans AFL-CIO (GNO)—who proudly display their union label and are making the game possible and the fan experience in the Crescent City run smoothly.

The Air Line Pilots (ALPA) union is asking Congress to pass the Safe Skies Act of 2013, which would set one standard of fatigue rules for all pilots. Currently, under a rule issued by the Federal Aviation Administration last year, only passenger pilots are required to operate under flight- and duty-time limits that protect them from excessive fatigue and the possible dangers they face if they become too tired to properly fly their plane. Pilots who fly cargo planes currently operate under a weaker standard.

The FlightDeck is a monthly YouTube program from the Air Line Pilots (ALPA) that features aviation industry news for ALPA members, industry stakeholders and the traveling public. Regular segments, such as “Ask a Pilot” and “Fit for Flight,” answer commonly asked questions and offer helpful tips for those interested in aviation. Here’s the latest edition.

You can find previous episodes and special reports here.

The NFL referee lockout is a complete disaster—something that’s obvious to everyone except (supposedly) the people keeping the referees locked out. Much ink has been spent on decrying the replacement referees and how they’re ruining football (never mind how they’re putting players’ safety at risk). What hasn’t gotten much attention in this lockout is symbolic of a much bigger issue: Training for a high-performing workforce matters.

The union movement is the largest workforce trainer of adults outside the U.S. military.

This is a cross-post from the Air Line Pilots (ALPA) blog, Pilot Partisan. 

The 2012 election is just 56 days away. ALPA pilots: Will you be flying on November 6^th? On call? Not sure? 

Check out ALPA’s handy voter information guide, available on our website at ALPA 2012 Voter Guide, to find out all the rules and deadlines for registration and early and absentee voting in your state. We hope you find it useful, and we hope that you will vote. 

As millions of Americans took a moment this morning to remember the tragedy that occurred 11 years ago on Sept. 11 in New York City, Virginia and Pennsylvania, military veterans who’ve found careers through the Ironworkers, Laborers (LiUNA), Heat and Frost Insulators and Bricklayers (BAC) are rebuilding the World Trade Center in New York.

Take a minute to watch the YouTube video in the post. 

 Other unions spoke out in honor of those who lost their lives on 9/11 and the members who made a difference that day:

This is a crosspost from the Air Line Pilots’ (ALPA) Pilot Partisan blog. 

The Senate Appropriations Committee approved a much-needed boost to the Commodities Future Trading Commission’s (CFTC) budget yesterday. The CFTC is responsible for implementing and enforcing rules to ensure speculative trading in the oil futures market is tightly monitored.

Most airlines utilize hedging strategies to protect themselves from wild spikes and drops in the price of oil. They are legitimate end users of the product, and the CFTC permits the airline industry to continue such legitimate hedging practices. However, many large investors use the derivatives markets to speculate on oil prices, resulting in unsustainable increases in fuel costs. Such speculation negatively impacts our jobs and our industry, which is why ALPA has been strongly advocating for tougher rules and oversight to reduce excessive speculation.

Some of  New York City’s largest unions and community groups are joining the “Occupy Wall Street” protests. For three weeks a core group of 200 to 300 people have kept a constant vigil on Wall Street to hold the financial industry accountable for the schemes and reckless games that led to the economic collapse. (Follow the action on Twitter with the hashtag #occupyWallStreet.) You can support the protestors by donating so they can buy pizzas to keep up their campaign. To donate, click here.

The AFL-CIO Executive Council welcomed three new members today: Airline Pilots (ALPA) President Capt. Lee Moak, Lorretta Johnson, executive vice president of AFT and Sheet Metal Workers (SMWIA) President Joseph Nigro. The Council also honored three retiring members at its annual August meeting, held this year at the National Labor College (NLC) in Silver Spring, Md.