Mechanics Approve Contract, Averting Strike at United Air
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Mechanics at United Airlines approved a new contract yesterday, averting a strike that could have begun as early as tomorrow. United’s 13,000 mechanics and cleaning crew workers voted by 59 percent to ratify the new contract, union officials said. The mechanics rejected a previous contract offer three weeks ago, but United and negotiators reached a tentative agreement on Feb. 18 on a contract that further improved pay and benefits. A strike would have been ruinous for United, which lost a record $2.1 billion last year. Many analysts had said a strike would force the airline to file for bankruptcy protection. ”Today’s ratification puts a long and difficult process behind us,” John W. Creighton Jr., the chairman of the UAL Corporation, United’s parent, said in a statement. He added that the approval ”provides a foundation on which to build our strategic recovery efforts.” Scotty Ford, the president of the United chapter of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, said in a statement, ”I want to thank our members at United for the strong support they gave their negotiating committee under very difficult circumstances.” The agreement replaces a contract that ran from 1994 to 2000. In return for equity ownership in the airline, United mechanics agreed to a pay freeze when the old contract was in effect. At the date of signing, the mechanics’ top hourly wage, which has been $25.60 since 1994, will rise 37 percent, to $35.14. That figure will increase to $37.54 by the end of the contract in 2005. Over the next two years, mechanics will receive retroactive pay of as much as $16,500 covering the period from July 12, 2000, until the signing date of the new contract. United will make these payments quarterly. In addition, United agreed to raise pensions and to pay the fees for the government-issued licenses that the mechanics hold. More : query.nytimes.com |