Delta, Pilots in Court Over Pay Company Asks Bankruptcy Judge to Dissolve Contract With Union
Posted on: Tuesday, 22 November 2005, 03:02 CST
By Michael J. Martinez <; Madlen Read< Associated Press
NEW YORK - Delta Air Lines Inc. asked a U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge Wednesday to void its contract with Delta's pilots' union so the beleaguered airline can impose deep wage and benefit cuts and avoid further financial erosion.
With several uniformed Delta pilots looking on in a standing- room-only courtroom, Delta attorney Jack Gallagher said the airline valued its pilots and tried to negotiate reductions, but ultimately failed.
Faced with rising fuel costs, Delta is seeking to slash $325 million from its collective bargaining agreement with its pilots, saying the money is needed to keep its operations running. The union, which has offered $90.7 million in concessions, has threatened to strike if the court grants Delta's request.
The hearing started with union attorney Bruce Simon asking U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Prudence Carter Beatty to remove herself from deciding on the union contract, claiming she showed bias through comments in earlier court hearings.
Mr. Simon cited a Nov. 10 Asso-ciated Press story in which Judge Beatty said: "What's really weird is that anyone agreed to pay them that much money to begin with."
She denied the request, saying her comments, made in jest, were misinterpreted.
In Atlanta on Tuesday, 800 pilots' union members and spouses rallied in support of the union's position, insisting the threat of a strike was not a bluff, though Delta maintains a strike would cripple the company and force a shutdown.
Delta pilots currently earn an average of $169,393 a year, according to a company bankruptcy court filing. The figure does not include proposed pilot pay rate reductions. Junior pilots make considerably less, and senior pilots in some cases make more. The type of aircraft a pilot flies also is a factor in the pay scale.
Source: Augusta Chronicle, The
Related Articles
 |
 |
User Comments (0)
RSS Feeds