A federal bankruptcy judge ordered Mesaba Airlines to wait until Thursday before imposing any pay cuts on its employees, as negotiations between the two sides appeared to be on hold for the weekend.
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Gregory Kishel is scheduled to rule Monday on whether unions at Mesaba Aviation Inc. can strike if the feeder for Northwest Airlines Corp. imposes pay cuts on its workers.
Kishel ruled Oct. 16 that Mesaba can void its contracts with its pilots, flight attendants and mechanics unions and impose pay cuts on workers, but he directed management on Friday to delay that action until at least 12:01 a.m. Thursday.
Mesaba is seeking concessionary deals from the three unions as it seeks to hold creditors at bay. But no bargaining sessions were scheduled for this weekend.
"We anticipate talking with the unions next week before the Thursday deadline" for voiding current contracts and setting new work terms, Mesaba spokeswoman Elizabeth Costello said Friday.
If negotiations fail, Mesaba has told Kishel it intends to impose labor cost cuts of 17.5 percent on the unions.
Attorneys for Mesaba's pilots, flight attendants, and mechanics have argued that judges are legally barred from blocking strikes even when the consequences would be dire. The unions have also said it would be unfair to allow the company to impose the terms it wants while also taking away their right to strike, saying it would strip unions of any leverage they might have in negotiations.
Tom Wychor, chairman of the Mesaba pilots union, said that in the pilot negotiations, $4 million in cutbacks over four years separate the two sides. But a deal remains elusive, he said.
"We have taken painful steps to meet many of their needs," Wychor said. "This company must step up to address our concerns," including financial benefits to the pilots as the company grows.
Mesaba, a unit of MAIR Holdings Inc., filed for Chapter 11 protection in October 2005, about a month after Northwest, its only customer, did the same thing.
Mesaba has warned that its financial situation is deteriorating and it can't tap into $24 million in debt financing unless it reaches a deal with its unions.
Mesaba does business as Mesaba Airlines and flies under the Northwest Airlink name, funneling passengers to Northwest's hubs in Minneapolis, Detroit and Memphis, Tenn. It flies to 86 cities in the U.S. and Canada. It is the only air carrier serving some of those cities.
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On the Net:
Mesaba Airlines: http://www.mesaba.com
Northwest Airlines: http://www.nwa.com
Unions: http://www.mesabalabor.org
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