=20 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- This article was sent to you by someone who found it on SF Gate. The original article can be found on SFGate.com here: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=3D/news/archive/2003/04/15/n= ational0533EDT0490.DTL ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Tuesday, April 15, 2003 (AP) American Airlines awaits results of employee vote on concessions ANGELA K. BROWN, Associated Press Writer (04-15) 06:00 PDT FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) -- The fate of American Airlines rests in the hands of its employees who are voting on labor concessions totaling $1.8 billion. The airline said the election results would determine whether it files for bankruptcy. Pilots, flight attendants and ground workers were scheduled to complete voting Tuesday on tentative agreements that cover nearly all the labor cost savings that American says it needs to avoid bankruptcy. The concessions include layoffs, pay cuts and reduced benefits. "Unless all three unions ratify these tentative agreements, we will be left with no choice but to file bankruptcy," company spokesman Bruce Hicks said Monday. Leaders of the three main unions said they reluctantly supported the cost-cutting deals as an alternative to bankruptcy. The Allied Pilots Association said Monday it was extending voting for one day, at the request of the American Arbitration Association, which is handling the vote tabulation for American's three major labor unions. The unions for flight attendants and ground workers already were set to end voting Tuesday morning. The vote is being conducted by phone and over the Internet. If any of the unions reject the givebacks or fail to complete voting by that deadline, Hicks said the world's largest airline will quickly file for bankruptcy protection. American is seeking $660 million in concessions from its 12,000 pilots, $620 million from 34,000 ground workers and $340 million from 24,000 flight attendants. The agreements include layoffs for 2,500 pilots, about 2,000 flight attendants and up to 1,400 ground workers. American chairman and chief executive Donald J. Carty warned that if American goes into bankruptcy, it will seek $500 million in additional labor concessions. On the Net: American Arbitration Association: www.adr.org =20 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright 2003 AP