AMR unions seek duration cut in concession deals DALLAS (Reuters) =97 Union leaders at American Airlines said Tuesday they=20 have asked the carrier to sweeten the pot with a shorter duration on wage=20 concession deals struck last week that staved off an imminent bankruptcy=20 filing. Even though the tentative deals were approved by boards at unions=20 representing American Airlines workers and are currently being voted on by= =20 members, union leaders indicated it may be difficult for labor to accept=20 concessions without additional terms that would benefit the rank and file=20 when business improves for the slumping airline industry. The tentative=20 agreements struck on March 31 are aimed at saving American, the world's=20 largest airline and a division of AMR Corp., $1.8 billion in annual labor=20 costs. The deadline for the members' vote is next Monday and Tuesday =97=20 depending on the labor group. "This deal may be in real jeopardy without=20 greater participation for labor in the upside," said Gregg Overman, a=20 spokesman for the Allied Pilots Association, which represents about 13,500= =20 American pilots. Overman said incentive-based bonuses and other terms that= =20 would benefit employees when business improves were given short shrift in=20 the 11th hour deals that kept the carrier from filing for bankruptcy. "There has never been a six-year down cycle in the history of the airline=20 industry," he said. American officials said they would not discuss details= =20 that were a part of the negotiation process. Leaders of the three major=20 unions at American have been meeting with rank and file since striking the= =20 concession deals. Union members have expressed anger at the deals that will= =20 cut pay for several major groups between 15% to 20%. But some union leaders= =20 said that while the concession deals would entail painful cuts, without=20 approval the company will likely head to bankruptcy court, which would=20 prompt even deeper cuts for labor. "If the tentative agreements are not ratified by all three unions, we are=20 left with no choice but to file for bankruptcy," American spokesman Bruce=20 Hicks said. BANKRUPTCY LOOMS WITH 'NO' VOTE Union leaders have been blunt in their remarks to members about the need to= =20 ratify the agreement. "As dreadful as the Restructuring Agreement is, the=20 company's bankruptcy proposal =97 that is, what they would seek to achieve= in=20 bankruptcy from the court =97 is far worse," John Ward, president of the=20 union that represents American's flight attendants, said in remarks posted= =20 on the company's web site. "A 'no' vote will merely trigger a bankruptcy=20 filing the day following the voting deadline. This is a fact that has been= =20 bluntly stated by the company, without reservation," Jim Little, director=20 of the Air Transport Division for the union that represents about 34,500=20 ground workers and mechanics at American, said in a communication with=20 members earlier this week. The tentative deals to cut annual employee costs= =20 by $1.8 billion include $660 million in savings from pilots, $340 million=20 from flight attendants and $620 million from ground workers and mechanics.= =20 The carrier also obtained $180 million in savings from management and other= =20 groups. During talks with labor groups to strike the deals, American said=20 it would be forced to seek up to $2.3 billion in labor concessions if it=20 were in bankruptcy as a result of debtor in possession financing, union=20 officials said. The pilots' union said they expect to lose about 2,500=20 positions in the concession deal, mostly through furloughs, while the=20 flight attendants said their rough calculations indicate the deal would=20 mean a loss of about 2,300 positions for them. The pot was sweetened for labor groups by the airline, which offered them a= =20 profit-sharing plan and a stock-option deal that could have them owning up= =20 to 20% of the company. AMR will issue options for employees to purchase up= =20 to a quarter of its outstanding shares over the next five years, which=20 could lead to employees owning about 20% of the airline. Options will be=20 priced at the close of the trading day following the final ratification=20 agreement. The profit-sharing plan will allow employees to share 15% of=20 pretax operating profits greater than $500 million, it said. *************************************************** The owner of Roger's Trinbago Site/TnTisland.com Roj (Roger James) escape email mailto:ejames@xxxxxxxxx Trinbago site: www.tntisland.com Carib Brass Ctn site www.tntisland.com/caribbeanbrassconnection/ Steel Expressions www.mts.net/~ejames/se/ Site of the Week: http://www.carstt.com TnT Webdirectory: http://search.co.tt *********************************************************