United machinists say labor pact 'not possible' by deadline By DAVE CARPENTER The Associated Press 3/7/03 6:38 PM CHICAGO (AP) -- The union representing United Airlines ground workers said Friday it "won't be possible" to reach an agreement on labor concessions by the company's March 17 deadline for taking the contract issue to court. After a week of negotiations with the company in Chicago, leaders of the Machinists' union representing baggage handlers and public contact employees expressed hope they will be able to work out a tentative contract. But they told their members such an agreement isn't imminent. "It is now apparent that achieving new ratified contracts by that date will not be possible," the union officials said in a posting on the Web site of Machinists' union District 141. "Time is running out on these complex negotiations and difficult issues stand between us and agreement." The main issues are subcontracting, job security, part-time work status, reservations and United's proposal to create a separate low-cost carrier, according to the statement signed by president Randy Canale and other district leaders. United, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in December, is on a tight timetable to show financial progress or risk losing its emergency financing. It wants to slash labor costs by $2.56 billion a year and says that on March 17 it will begin the weeks-long legal process under which existing contracts could be voided and its own terms imposed. Both the airline and the unions have said they would continue negotiating past March 17 if no new pact is reached by then, since the contract-breaking process takes several weeks. The other Machinists' union, representing mechanics, commented only briefly on negotiations in a Friday posting to its members. The District 141-M negotiators said that "United's desire to outsource maintenance and inflict additional furloughs on our membership remains a contentious issue." United's pilots and flight attendants unions both have publicly opposed United's proposal for a low-fares carrier as contract talks continue. United spokesman Jeff Green declined to characterize the status of any contract negotiations. He said the company remains committed to reaching a consensual agreement on labor cost savings with all its unions. On the machinists' side, negotiations are shadowed by a rival union's intensifying effort to take over representation from the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers. The Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association filed a petition Thursday with the National Mediation Board seeking to represent United's mechanics and related employees -- an action IAM officials said threatens to derail negotiations the same way an earlier bid did in 2000. "AMFA's intrusion at this critical stage introduces potentially fatal distraction into an already precarious situation," said Robert Roach Jr., general vice president for the IAM. "They have placed the futures of the very employees that they propose to represent in dire jeopardy." He accused AMFA of taking steps to benefit Northwest Airlines, where the majority of its members work. A phone call to AMFA's office in Minneapolis was not immediately returned. The mediation board will determine if AMFA received enough signed cards from workers to put the representation question to a vote. Shares in United parent UAL Corp. rose 6 cents to close at $1.03 Friday on the New York Stock Exchange.