Tue, Oct 25, 2011
Pilots Hopeful Government Intervention Will Jumpstart Contract
Negotiations
The pilots of
PSA Airlines, represented by the Air Line Pilots Association,
Int’l (ALPA), took the next step toward reaching a new
contract with senior management on Monday by meeting with a federal
mediator from the National Mediation Board (NMB). PSA pilots, who
fly regional aircraft under the US Airways Express brand, have been
in direct contract negotiations with their management since June
2009.
ALPA and company executives initially made steady progress in
the early stages of negotiations. The parties reached tentative
agreements on many of the non-economic sections of the collective
bargaining agreement. The pace of negotiations has slowed recently,
as the two sides began discussing pay, work rules, retirement, and
other money-related issues. No significant progress has been made
since September 2010, and recent discussions have not been
productive. The NMB was petitioned for mediator assistance in July
2011, and the request was granted shortly thereafter.
“Two years is too long to be in contract negotiations,”
said Capt. Tom Arline, chairman of the ALPA unit at PSA.
“Continuing down this path will not get us to our end goal
– a new collective bargaining agreement. Mediation is the
next logical step. We are hopeful that the addition of a neutral
third party will help break the logjam and enable us to reach an
agreement that recognizes the value pilots bring to PSA Airlines,
US Airways, and our customers.”
Under the Railway Labor Act, airlines’ labor contracts do
not expire; they become amendable. The PSA pilots’ contract
became amendable on June 30, 2009. Mediation presents an
opportunity for a neutral third party, appointed by the NMB, to
facilitate the process. The mediator does not have the authority to
impose conditions upon the parties or decide issues. Talks will
continue until the parties reach a contract or until the NMB
determines the parties are at an impasse and releases them into a
30-day cooling off period, which could be followed by a pilot
strike.
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