Airline Seeks Restraining Order Against Union
In a federal
courtroom in Chicago on Wednesday, United Airlines and its pilots'
union squared off in a legal fight over an alleged sick-out that
forced United to cancel hundreds of flights in July.
The Chicago Tribune reports United blames the Air Line Pilots
Association, saying the union encouraged pilots facing layoffs in
capacity cuts scheduled for September to protest by calling in
sick, in violation of both the Railway Labor Act, and the pilots'
contract with the airline.
"I have been with United for nearly 40 years, and I am proud of
this company and what all of our people working together have
accomplished," said United's Chief Administrative Officer Pete
McDonald, who was the first witness called for the airline. "By
seeking this preliminary injunction to stop unlawful work
slowdowns, we are standing up and refusing to let our customers and
employees be used as bargaining chips by ALPA in their campaign to
exert financial pressure on this company to open their contract
early."
The union responds that United and its CEO, Glenn Tilton, are
trumping up the charge without proof... and says it did what it
could to convince the pilots not to stage a sick-out.
Indeed, it may be hard for United to prove its charge. If there
was union involvement, it appears to have been confined to an
unofficial phone-tree system designed to leave nothing behind in
written or e-mail form.
The most-junior of United's 6,500-or-so pilots -- who refer to
themselves as "The 2,172" -- have their own password-protected
website, where they can swap anecdotes and strategy suggestions,
independent of the union.
These low-seniority pilots were furloughed for as long as five
years following 9/11, and have been furious that after making
concessions to be rehired, 950 of them will again be out of work
when capacity cuts announced in early summer take effect next
month.
If United is able to get the restraining order it seeks against
the union, it will bring on increased court scrutiny of everything
the union does going into contract negotiations next year. If the
union later violates the restraining order in any way, big fines
could result. A similar case in 1999 involving American Airlines
resulted in fines of $45 million against its pilots.
Joshua Javits, former chairman of the National Mediation Board,
says the brinkmanship playing out between United and its pilots may
be skirting the line.
"There's certainly a lot of strategy and tactics in this legal
and collective-bargaining game they're playing," said Joshua
Javits, former chairman of the National Mediation Board. "It's very
risky for both sides."