Mechanics at US Airways do not expect to reach a voluntary agreement with the company on new concessions, increasing the possibility that a bankruptcy judge will throw out the union's contract later this week, a union executive said yesterday.þþRandy Canale, president of the International Association of Machinists unit at US Airways, said the group would return to the bargaining table today. But Mr. Canale said the package of concessions on the table was unacceptable and he was not optimistic that an agreement would be struck.þþÿOur jobs are not for sale,ÿ Mr. Canale said.þþAirline officials did not return calls or respond to e-mail messages seeking comment.þþLast month, a United States bankruptcy judge in Alexandria, Va., urged the machinists' union and the airline to reach an agreement on givebacks by Thursday or he would rule on the company's motion to void the union's contract.þþUS Airways said it must secure nearly $1 billion in labor costs savings within the coming weeks to stay in business. The machinists' union is the only one at the carrier that has not negotiated a deal.þþTalks have been slow with the union, which represents nearly 9,000 mechanics, fleet service and other maintenance workers at US Airways.þþMr. Canale would not say whether the union would go on strike if its contract was thrown out, but he did not rule out some sort of job action.þþUS Airways is in the middle of its second bankruptcy reorganization in two years, and has said it could liquidate early this year if it cannot cut costs enough.þþThe airline must also meet a series of financial benchmarks in the coming days to secure new financing and continue to draw on government-backed bank loans approved during its last restructuring in 2003.þþA major East Coast presence for years, the airline, which is based in Arlington, Va., has 27,000 employees. Most are members of four union groups representing pilots, flight attendants, reservation agents and ground workers.þþSome analysts and other industry observers predicted that US Airways would soon be out of business, after hundreds of workers called in sick at the height of the holiday travel period. More than 300 flights were canceled, affecting thousands of passengers. þþThe airline blamed workers for the disruptions, prompting a federal transportation investigation. But unions said the airline has been poorly managed, especially at its Philadelphia hub.þþFlight operations went smoothly over the weekend with the help of 200 management employees who volunteered to help ground workers in Philadelphia, the airline said.þþ
Source: NY Times
