The ranks in Northwest Airlines' union for baggage handlers, clerks and other ground workers could be thinned by 1,800 to 2,500 members under a proposed contract that may go to a vote next week.
Those workers who remain on the job would get 11.5 percent pay cuts, the union said.
The deal saves Northwest about $190 million a year, according to District 143 of the International Association of Machinists. It represents some 14,500 Northwest workers.
Union leaders say they agreed to take the proposal to members because they feared they would fare much worse under a contract imposed by the judge overseeing the airline's bankruptcy reorganization.
Northwest was poised to ask the judge to overturn the IAM contract as part of its drive to cut labor costs by $1.4 billion a year. The airline is in court this week arguing for the judge to reject contracts with pilots and flight attendants.
"With the court hanging over our head, we told members we would do the best we could and let the membership decide," said IAM District 143 president Bobby De Pace "It's a tough deal, for sure."
Union members will also take a strike authorization vote, just in case the contract is rejected, De Pace added.
Outsourcing would account for most of the job losses, as Northwest sends work at scores of smaller airports to third parties, said De Pace.
The overall extent of the job reduction will depend largely on the reaction of workers eligible for a buyout that would give them 20 weeks' pay for leaving the airline. If they don't take the buyout, they could land jobs at 40 airports where Northwest will not outsource IAM work.
The outsourcing is far less than what Northwest originally sought, said De Pace. The airline had wanted to outsource all jobs outside its Twin Cities and Detroit hubs, shedding 8,000 to 10,000 jobs, he said.
Many IAM members are looking to leave the airline and will jump at the buyout offer, he expects.
The contract would run until the end of 2010 if the airline emerges from bankruptcy this year or 2011 if it emerges by 2007. The contract calls for a 1 percent raise in 2008 and 1.5 percent raise in 2009. There would be a 1.5 percent raise in 2010 if the contract runs to the end of 2011.
With the 11.5 percent pay cut, most Northwest employees represented by the IAM would earn between $7.30 and $17.70 an hour, De Pace indicated.
Martin J. Moylan can be reached at 651-228-5479 or [email protected].
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