WASHINGTON >> The "odds are very close" that United Airlines' mechanics today will reject a contract -- which includes 37 percent raises -- in favor of a strike, union President Thomas Buffenbarger says. United’s mechanics
may choose strike
over contractAssociated Press
Buffenbarger, president of the International Association of Machinists, said yesterday he thinks a majority of the 13,000 mechanics will vote against United's offer because it contains insufficient retirement benefits, includes no job security and delays retroactive pay.
Union members will vote today at more than 30 union halls across the country on two issues -- United's offer and a strike.
Should a majority of mechanics reject the contract, a two-thirds vote is required to authorize a strike. That could begin at across the country at 12:01 a.m. EST Feb. 20 -- unless President Bush asks Congress to intervene and possibly impose a settlement. That has never occurred in an airline labor dispute.
Bush has moved to block the mechanics' strike once before. He established a presidential emergency board in December, which last month recommended that United, the nation's second-largest carrier, boost pay 37 percent to industry-leading wages.
A top United mechanic earning now $25.60 an hour would get a raise to $35.14 immediately and to $37.54 by mid-2004. American Airlines, the largest carrier, pays $34 an hour.
United's mechanics have not had a raise since 1994. Buffenbarger argued that since 1994, while United's capacity has grown by 15 percent and profits topped $4 billion, the mechanics have not shared in the success.
United has hit turbulent times since Sept. 11. On Feb. 1 the airline's parent company, UAL Corp., announced it had lost $2.1 billion in 2001 and had been burning through as much as $10 million a day.
Buffenbarger says the hemorrhaging has slowed. He also objects to a requirement that the union participate in a financial recovery plan for the airline, details of which are outlined in the contract.