Leaders of the US Airways pilots' union will meet tomorrow in Pittsburgh to resume debate over a tentative agreement that would grant $300 million in wage and benefit cuts to the airline.þþUnion officials failed to agree at a two-day meeting over the weekend in Charlotte, N.C., on whether to send the deal to members for a vote. Approval by the master executive council of the Air Line Pilots Association, which represents US Airways' pilots, is needed before all pilots can vote on the deal.þþLeaders from Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, who represent the majority of the airline's pilots, asked for more time to consider the pact's details, Jack Stephan, a spokesman for the pilots' union, said yesterday. ÿClearly, there is still some resistance by the Pennsylvania delegation to sending this thing out,ÿ Mr. Stephan said.þþDespite the delay, the pilots' union scheduled a series of information meetings to explain the tentative agreement to pilots. Those meetings run through Oct. 14. The union has not yet determined when voting will take place, Mr. Stephan said.þþUS Airways submitted a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing, its second in two years, on Sept. 12. The move came after union members did not grant the airline's bid for $800 million in cuts.þþUS Airways has since increased its demand to $950 million in cuts. Last month, it asked a federal bankruptcy court to impose emergency pay cuts of 23 percent on its unions, and asked for reductions in pension payments and other steps. þþWithout the emergency cuts, US Airways could liquidate by mid-February, the airline said in a court filing. A judge is set to hear the request at a hearing on Thursday.þþUnder the federal bankruptcy code, companies can seek emergency cuts and can file another motion asking that labor contracts be set aside completely and be replaced with less-expensive terms, unless it reaches agreements with its unions.þþDepending on what happens with the tentative deal, US Airways could still seek emergency cuts for the pilots' union, and replace them later with the terms of a ratified deal. þþThe airline has reached agreements with a few small labor groups, but is still negotiating with flight attendants, mechanics and reservations agents.þþThe tentative agreement calls for pilots to take an 18.25 percent wage cut. US Airways' contribution to their pension plan would be sharply reduced. þþThe airline also said it would eliminate health care coverage for retirees, a move it plans for all its labor groups, meaning workers would have to rely on Medicare after age 65.þþBecause pilots at major airlines are required by the federal government to retire at age 60, the temporary agreement would allow pilots to pay for company medical coverage until they reach 65.þþ
Source: NY Times
