Will Be Offered To 400 Ramp Workers, Customer Service Agents

United Airlines and the International Association of Machinists (IAM) announced last week they have come to an agreement on an opportunity for eligible customer service and ramp employees to voluntarily separate from the company. The program will be available for up to 400 customer service and ramp employees.

Employees who are at least 45 years old and have at least 15 years of service with the company as of September 7, 2008 will be eligible to participate. Participants will be entitled to severance payments based on years of service and retiree travel benefits, similar to an agreement United reached with the flight attendants union last month to cut up to 600 positions.

"As we move forward with our previously announced capacity reductions, this agreement with the IAM will assist us in mitigating the impact of involuntary furloughs on our IAM employees," said Scott Dolan, senior vice president - Airport Operations and Cargo for United.

United says it will continue to explore "viable alternatives" to furloughs, as the airline moves to slash its ranks in a desperate attempt to stay afloat in troubled economic times.

FMI: www.united.com, www.goiam.org