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United talks break off
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August 24, 2001: 5:05 p.m. ET
Airline, mechanics seek mediation halt; 30-day strike countdown could start
By Staff Writer Chris Isidore
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - United Airlines and the union representing its 15,000 mechanics are both poised to ask federal officials to declare an impasse in negotiations between the two sides, a move that could start the clock ticking towards a strike, although the airline said it is confident there won't be any disruption of service on account of the move.
The airline and the International Association of Machinists concluded four days of talks Friday mediated by the National Mediation Board, which oversees labor relations in the airline industry without a new labor agreement.
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United Airlines says it's confident its planes will keep flying even if a strike deadline is set for its talks with mechanics. | |
United, the main unit of UAL Corp. (UAL: Research, Estimates), issued a statement Friday saying it was asking the NMB to release the two sides from mediation. The union had already requested that the NMB declare a 30-day cooling off period which under airline labor law must precede a strike.
Shares of UAL, the world's second largest airline holding company, gained $1.37 to $34.49 in trading Friday.
The NMB issued a statement Friday saying that it would meet with the two sides separately during the week of Sept. 3 about a possible offer of binding arbitration, the step that must be taken before declaring a 30-day cooling off period. But unless both sides agree to binding arbitration, which rarely happens, the clock then starts ticking towards a possible strike a month later.
President can block strike
At the end of the cooling off period President Bush can delay a strike for up to 60 more days through appointment of a Presidential Emergency Board to weigh the various offers from the two sides. Such a move is seen generally as benefiting management.
Bush named such a board in talks between Northwest Airlines and a separate mechanics union earlier in March, and he threatened to do so in labor talks at other major airlines since that time.
United's statement said it does not foresee any disruption in its service to customers as a result of Friday's developments, suggesting that it is counting on the president to come to management's rescue once again.
Joe Tiberi, spokesman for the IAM, said that the union would be opposed to any PEB in this case, and that it was confident that an agreement can be reached during the cooling off period.
"Historically those final 30 days when everyone's back is against the wall is when most productive negotiations take place," he said. "That's why we've been pushing for that since November."
Talks were delayed while the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Organization, an independent union that represents mechanics at Northwest, sought to win representation at United as well. The NMB rejected its petition to have a vote there earlier this summer.
Besides the 15,000 mechanics, IAM represents about 30,000 ramp and customer service workers at the airline. Together they own about 20 percent of employee-owned UAL.
Click here for a look at airline stocks
The entire airline industry has been hit by a steep decline in demand for business travel, plunging most of the major carriers into the red so far this year. But UAL's losses have been larger, and longer-lasting than other major carriers. 
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