I’m really perplexed, though not entirely surprised, at the press coverage of the Northwest strike–on many levels. The main one that I find fascinating is the failure to probe deeply into the motivations and background of O.V. Delle-Femine. Today, for example, we get The New York Times story of the labor leader going out to meet the troops–a number of who are grumbling about the strike.

I mean, who is this guy? He set up the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association for the sole purpose of raiding other unions. The press has not asked him, as far as I can tell:

• To explain his relationship with a management firm, McCormick Advisory Group, headquartered in Laconia, NH, and with a law firm, Seham Seham Meltz & Peterson, based in Westchester County, NY, which has a long history of representing management in the airline industry.
• to explain how The McCormick Group also founded the Professional Flight Attendants Association (PPFA), which successfully raided an AFL-CIO union at Northwest Airlines.
• To disclose what the Seham law firm gets from AMFA and whether he knows that the Seham firm has long represented airline managements in opposing workers and their unions. According to a source inside the labor movement, Martin Seham and/or Lee Seham have represented Varig Brazilian Airlines on a continuing basis; the Sperry Gyroscope Company against the Engineers Association; Pan American Airways against the Seafarers International Union of North America; Vantage Steamship Corporation against the National Maritime Union of America; Maritime Overseas Corporation against the Masters, Mates and Pilots and the International Longshoreman’s Association; and Jackson Engineering Company against the Marine and Shipbuilders Workers. And The Seham firm also has represented El Al Israeli Airlines, Air Lingus, SAS Scandinavian Airlines, TWA. Mt. Vernon Tanker Company, Seatrain Lines, Inc., Delta Steamship Lines, Zapata Bulk Transportation, Inc., Wabash Transport, the Maritime Association, Airfreight Express Limited, A. Millner Company and the Owners Committee on Electric Rates.

None of this inquiry suggests that I still don’t worry about the workers who are getting royally screwed. It’s clear Northwest management feels pretty cocky–it hasn’t asked for the Bush Administration to intervene in the strike and is already talking about permanently replacing the workers.

But, maybe the AMFA workers, in addition to calling for solidarity, should throw Delle-Femine over the side. After all, for what seems like an agenda based on raking in money for his backers, he lead the workers into a disastrous strike.