Delta Air Lines debtor Comair's request to reject flight attendants' bargaining agreement denied

By Caroline Salls

Pittsburgh, April 26 - Delta Air Lines, Inc. debtor Comair Inc.'s request for court approval to reject the collective bargaining agreement with its flight attendants' union in order to reduce labor costs was denied based on the company's refusal to negotiate terms, according to a Wednesday filing with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.

Judge Adlai S. Hardin Jr. said the two sides must now return to the bargaining table in an attempt to negotiate a new bargaining agreement.

In the order denying rejection of the agreement, Hardin said Comair has taken the position that its original demand for $8.9 million in cost deductions from the flight attendants is non-negotiable, which goes against the bankruptcy code standard that the bargaining agreement parties must attempt to confer in good faith.

According to the order, the negotiations were terminated on April 17.

The International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents Comair's flight attendants.

In its motion, the company said the labor cost reductions are necessary to its ability to successfully reorganize.

Comair said it has reached agreements with its pilots' and machinists' unions, which have been ratified by the respective memberships. However, the agreed-upon concessions by those unions are expressly contingent upon the cost savings proposed by Comair from all unions, including the flight attendants.

Comair said the flight attendants' union has refused to agree to any meaningful concessions, forcing it to ask the court to reject the bargaining agreement.

Comair said its flight attendant wage scale is the highest among regional carriers.

Comair's proposal to the flight attendants includes a reduction in the per diem hourly rate to the average of the other Delta Connection carriers, as well as a new part-time flight attendant program that will allow the company to schedule flight attendants more efficiently.

In addition, Comair proposed eliminating prospective company funding of the flight attendants' retirement plan and proposed a profit-sharing plan that will permit flight attendants to share in any upside that the company achieves if its financial forecasts prove too conservative.

Union objections

The Teamsters filed two objections to the bargaining agreement rejection in March and distributed fliers calling on the company to rescind its bargaining agreement demands.

The Teamsters said the company has singled out the flight attendant unit for deep cuts and that Comair has failed to prove that it is entitled under bankruptcy law to reject the bargaining agreement.

"Comair seeks to reduce its flight attendants' pay rates and other benefits so it can enjoy the savings associated with those reductions," the objection said.

The union said the company's fundamental obligation is to show that its proposed $8.9 million in cuts to its flight attendants is essential for reorganization, which it has failed to do.

Delta, an Atlanta-based airline, filed for bankruptcy on Sept. 14, 2005. Its Chapter 11 case number is 05-17923.

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