Contrary to early reports Wednesday, the Section 1113 ruling was devastating for organized labor at American Airlines.
Unfortunately, the more we read of the 111-page ruling on American’s Section 1113 motion, the more clear it is that the judge has no interest in preserving labor contracts at American Airlines.
Abrogation of the pilots’ contract is only temporarily postponed by the ruling. The judge upheld two of the pilots’ arguments in the Section 1113 ruling and, as expected, gave American a very clear roadmap for fixing those two issues. In fact, American has already addressed the two defects in the pilots’ tentative agreement. On Friday, the Company will go back to the Bankruptcy Court and re-file their motion.
The APFA has very few arguments remaining that have not yet been ruled on. Our professionals believe that at best, we will receive the same temporary postponement based on technicalities in American’s motion that can easily be fixed.
This ruling, while disappointing, is not surprising and is a product of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code that heavily favors management.
We still have two choices before us: The first is to vote “NO” on the LBFO, which comes with a great deal of risk. We can now say with certainty that a “NO” vote will force us to live under the Company’s term sheet for some period of time. The second is to vote “YES,” which offers our members some protections from the financial harm and negative impact of the Term Sheet. With either choice, our ultimate goal remains unchanged. The APFA will continue to push to replace Tom Horton and his management team and achieve a merger with US Airways so that our Company can once again compete in this industry.
Voting on AA’s Last Best and Final Offer ends Sunday, August 19, 2012, at 10:00 a.m. Central Time. if you have not received your ballot or need a VIN and PIN to place your vote, please contact the ballot committee directly. The committee can be reached by emailing ballot@apfa.org calling 817.540.0108, ext. 8311.
Remember that with online and telephonic voting, you can change your vote until the voting period concludes. Only the last vote you place will be counted.
The APFA Fact Line will be open Friday and Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Central Time. It is manned by Flight Attendant Volunteerd. If you have any questions, please call: (682)292-0244.
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