Feds to mediate
Aloha, attendants

The two sides have been
talking since August but have
made little progress

By Peter Wagner
Star-Bulletin

Frustrated by slow pro-gress at the bargaining table, flight attendants at Aloha Airlines have asked for, and will receive, help from a federal mediator.

Peggy Gordon, president of the Aloha Master Executive Council of the Association of Flight Attendants, said contract negotiations with the company have made little headway since they began in August.

"At this speed, flight attendants won't see any improvements at work until the new century," Gordon said. "The flight attendants work hard and they deserve more."

Gordon said Aloha has returned to prosperity after several lean years.

Aloha spokesman Tom Yoneyama yesterday said the company was notified by the National Mediation Board that a mediator has been assigned to the negotiations.

"We're looking forward to the mediation process," he said. "The company is confident we can come to an agreement."

Terms of the union's 5-year contract, from 1992 to 1998, were open for negotiation in August. The airline has about 250 attendants.

While the union is seeking improvements in pay and benefits, a key concern is expanded routes the company is planning in the South Pacific and Micronesia.

"We just need more assurances on what the crew compliments will be, what pay will be and where we will stay," Gordon said.

The airline for several years has made infrequent stops at Christmas Island, Johnston Island, Midway and Wake Island. It is negotiating for routes in the Republic of the Marshall Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia.

Gordon said a strike against the airline is a possibility if mediation does not bring contract agreement.