Delta Pilots Union Affirms Strike Promise
Wednesday March 22, 7:14 pm ET
Head of Pilots Union at Delta Air Lines Affirms Promise to Strike if Pay Cuts Are Imposed
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The head of the pilots union at embattled Delta Air Lines Inc. affirmed Wednesday the union's promise to strike if pay cuts are imposed on the 6,000 pilots while urging the two sides to reach agreement.
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Lee Moak, chairman of the union's executive committee at Delta, made the statements at the end of the eighth day of hearings before an arbitration panel. The panel must decide by April 15 whether Delta, which is operating under bankruptcy protection, can void its contract with the pilots and impose up to $325 million in long-term pay and benefit reductions.
Delta's chief executive said this week that a strike by the pilots would spell the demise of the nation's third-largest airline. Company and union representatives have not had any negotiating sessions since the hearings began, though both sides say they are willing to meet.
Moak, speaking as a witness at the hearing, said "I won't blink" if the pilots deemed a strike to be warranted.
"We should be working together. We shouldn't be fighting over a couple hundred million dollars," he said.
Delta spokesman Bruce Hicks said after the hearing, "This isn't about our deep appreciation of our pilots. It's about getting all of our costs to market levels, including our pilots', in order to successfully restructure and preserve nearly 50,000 jobs, including 6,000 pilots' jobs."
Meanwhile, picketing by Delta pilots continued Wednesday at airports in Los Angeles and outside Cincinnati. The pilots also have bought space on large billboards on a road near the airline's headquarters in Atlanta. One says: "Gone with the wind? Delta has not funded employee pensions since July 2005." Another says: "Airline managements come and go. It's the employees who keep Delta flying."