Northwest Airlines Comments on IAM Contract Votes

Northwest Airlines tells ANN that it has reached an agreement with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) on a contract covering the airline's customer service and reservations staff.

The IAM announced that the agreement was ratified by a majority of its members.

Northwest said it was pleased that its customer service and reservations employees approved the new agreement. The airline appreciates its employees' recognition of the financial sacrifice needed to help Northwest restructure successfully.

IAM-represented equipment service employees (ESE) did not ratify the airline's settlement offer for that group. Northwest said it was disappointed by the outcome of the IAM ESE vote.

As a result of the ESE ratification vote results, Northwest will be asking the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York to proceed with the carrier's Section 1113(c) hearing relating to the ESE members of the IAM. The motion for a hearing, originally filed last year, was deferred in January when the airline and the IAM reached a settlement agreement on a new contract. Now that the ESEs have not ratified the agreement, the 1113(c) motion in regard to that group will be considered by the court. This motion asks the court to reject the existing labor agreement with the IAM ESEs.

The temporary wage and benefit reductions, ordered by the bankruptcy court in November, remain in effect for ESE employees.

FMI: www.nwa.com