Comair, Pilots Union Set Mediator Talks

CINCINNATI (AFX) - Comair and the union representing its 1,500 pilots will resume negotiations Monday with a mediator's help as the sides try to reach an agreement on wage cuts and other concessions the airline says it needs to emerge from bankruptcy protection.

The Delta Air Lines Inc. subsidiary and the Air Line Pilots Association announced Thursday that they have scheduled more negotiations this month and have agreed to have private mediator Richard Bloch assist in the talks.

Those talks are scheduled Jan. 8, Jan. 15-19 and Jan. 29-Feb. 1 in Washington, D.C., and Jan. 25-26 in Los Angeles.

The two sides averted a near-breakdown in negotiations last week, two days before the original Dec. 30 deadline for reaching a deal on wage cuts and other changes. They agreed to delay that deadline to Feb. 2, when Comair has said it will impose $15.8 million in annual concessions if a deal has not been reached.

A U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge in New York ruled last month that Comair could impose concessions if a deal was not reached. Pilots have authorized union leaders to call a strike if the airline throws out their contract.

The airline and the union said in statements released Thursday that they hope they can make progress with Bloch's help, but both sides stressed that the mediator will not have the power to impose changes or make any binding decisions.

Comair, along with its Atlanta-based parent, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in September 2005. Comair is seeking $70 million in savings as it tries to emerge from bankruptcy.

The Erlanger, Ky.-based Comair, located near the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, has 795 flights daily to about 100 cities in North America.

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