American Airlines Flight Attendants Approve New Contract

Earlier today, flight attendants at American Airlines approved a labor contract offer. It was a reasonably close vote – 59%. And nearly everyone eligible to vote did so. The flight attendants’ union is, of course, not happy with the deal, or the management at American Airlines, but agreed to it for the greater good. Perhaps they were simply afraid of what the bankruptcy judge might do with their existing contract.

Nonetheless, this vote is, according to American Airlines, important to its emergence from bankruptcy. At this point, the pilots are the only major labor group that has rejected American Airlines’ overtures. The ground workers union agreed to a deal earlier this month.

Obviously avoiding some of the labor costs will help American Airlines pull itself out of trouble. But how exactly the new contracts will help has yet to be seen. It may be that they just make American Airlines more attractive to potential merger prospects. To that end, American Airlines has reportedly been sending nondisclosure agreements to possible merger partners.

The decision by the American flight attendants is perhaps a start, but the bankruptcy issues are not likely to be resolved soon.

If you have any questions about this or any other aviation issue, call William Angelley at (214) 826-5400.