Fri, May 20, 2005
IAMA Leader Says US Airways Bankruptcy Was Ruse To Dump Labor
Agreements
Bill Wise smells something fishy.
The US Airways mechanic and vice president of the machinists'
union at US Airways' hub in Charlotte said Friday he believed the
company's merger with America West was the real reason behind its
second bankruptcy filing.
"Now, the real story comes out," Wise told ANN. "[Management]
turned down our concession offers so they could get out of" their
labor contracts. By doing so, Wise said, US Airways was able to
lower salaries and benefits to a level more in line with those
offered workers by America West.
"We were forced in line," he said.
In Thursday's news conference from Tempe, AZ, announcing the
merger, America West CEO Doug Parker acknowledged there would be
job cuts among the two companies' 42,000 workers. "But we're
talking four- or five-thousand cuts and saving 35,000 jobs," he
said.
Wise suggests many of those cuts will be made in Charlotte, even
after Parker and Lakefield offered North Carolina lawmakers
assurances that the Charlotte hub would only grow.
The machinists handle much of the
heavy maintenance workload at US Airways -- a task outsourced by
America West. One major contractor for heavy maintenance on
commercial aircraft is Air Canada -- a company that's invested
millions in the merger. Wise believes the Air Canada investment
comes with a simple caveat: All heavy maintenance for the new
airline will be handled north of the border.
If approved by both regulators and a Northern Virginia
bankruptcy judge, the two companies plan to blend operations within
about three years. Wise figures he and the other 4,000 or so
machinists in Charlotte have about that much time to look for other
jobs.
More News
Aero Linx: International Business Aviation Council Ltd IBAC promotes the growth of business aviation, benefiting all sectors of the industry and all regions of the world. As a non->[...]
"During the annual inspection of the B-24 “Diamond Lil” this off-season, we made the determination that 'Lil' needs some new feathers. Due to weathering, the cloth-cove>[...]
Also: Bushcat Woes, Hummingbird 300 SL 4-Seat Heli Kit, Carbon Cub UL The newest Junkers is a faithful recreation that mates a 7-cylinder Verner radial engine to the airframe offer>[...]
Also: Seaplane Pilots Association, Rotax 916’s First Year, Gene Conrad After a decade and a half of struggling with the FAA and other aero-politics, G100UL is in production a>[...]
Also: Martha King Scholarship, Montaer Grows, Textron Updates Pistons, FlySto The FAA is hiring thousands of air traffic controllers, but the window to apply will only be open for >[...]