US Air Pilots Union Agrees to Vote On Concession Deal
By Adrian Schofield, Aviation Daily
The US Airways pilots union finally decided late Tuesday night to send a tentative concession accord to its members for a ratification vote, but the union has been careful to avoid an outright endorsement of the deal. The US Airways unit of the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) voted “overwhelmingly†to send the deal to members, although it took three meetings for a divided union leadership to reach agreement. The union told pilots they will be sent a summary of the deal, along with a list of its advantages and disadvantages. Voting will begin soon and will close Oct. 21. Some ALPA representatives sent letters comparing the deal with the interim cost cuts the airline has asked the bankruptcy court to impose. However, ALPA’s US Airways Master Executive Council (MEC) told members this comparison is “incomplete and misleading†because the interim cuts would be short-term only. If US Airways asks the court to impose long-term concessions, they would be no better — and could be much worse — than the tentative deal, the MEC said. The concession agreement includes 18% pay cuts, benefit reductions and productivity improvements. The MEC said the new agreement will save the airline $1.8 billion through 2009, bringing the total of pilot givebacks to nearly $7 billion.
A meeting with the International Association of Machinists (IAM) union Tuesday did not move the airline any closer to a concession agreement with this group. IAM told airline representatives that “the breadth and magnitude of its proposals were unjustifiable.†According to the union, US Airways “remains adamant that their proposals must be accepted in their entirety despite the fact that they have settled for far less with other employee groups.†An IAM spokesman said the airline has not presented a long-term concession proposal, and no further meetings are scheduled. Until the airline filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, IAM refused to consider another round of contract restructuring. Yesterday, the third group of workers represented by the Transport Workers Union ratified a concession deal. Flight simulator engineers approved concessions worth about $500,000 a year.
By Adrian Schofield, Aviation Daily
The US Airways pilots union finally decided late Tuesday night to send a tentative concession accord to its members for a ratification vote, but the union has been careful to avoid an outright endorsement of the deal. The US Airways unit of the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) voted “overwhelmingly†to send the deal to members, although it took three meetings for a divided union leadership to reach agreement. The union told pilots they will be sent a summary of the deal, along with a list of its advantages and disadvantages. Voting will begin soon and will close Oct. 21. Some ALPA representatives sent letters comparing the deal with the interim cost cuts the airline has asked the bankruptcy court to impose. However, ALPA’s US Airways Master Executive Council (MEC) told members this comparison is “incomplete and misleading†because the interim cuts would be short-term only. If US Airways asks the court to impose long-term concessions, they would be no better — and could be much worse — than the tentative deal, the MEC said. The concession agreement includes 18% pay cuts, benefit reductions and productivity improvements. The MEC said the new agreement will save the airline $1.8 billion through 2009, bringing the total of pilot givebacks to nearly $7 billion.
A meeting with the International Association of Machinists (IAM) union Tuesday did not move the airline any closer to a concession agreement with this group. IAM told airline representatives that “the breadth and magnitude of its proposals were unjustifiable.†According to the union, US Airways “remains adamant that their proposals must be accepted in their entirety despite the fact that they have settled for far less with other employee groups.†An IAM spokesman said the airline has not presented a long-term concession proposal, and no further meetings are scheduled. Until the airline filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, IAM refused to consider another round of contract restructuring. Yesterday, the third group of workers represented by the Transport Workers Union ratified a concession deal. Flight simulator engineers approved concessions worth about $500,000 a year.