Northwest pilots will craft proposal to cut labor costs BRAINERD, Minn. (AP) ? The union of Northwest Airlines pilots will develop a plan to cut pilot labor costs, but it will also ask the airline for something in return, the union said Wednesday. In late February, the airline asked the Air Line Pilots Association to consider a sweeping proposal that would cut Northwest's pilot labor costs by $442 million a year. It would be achieved by reducing pay and benefits, altering work rules and furloughing hundreds of pilots. Northwest ALPA leaders said Wednesday that they would work with management and other unions to further quantify the airline's problems and determine what steps may be necessary to help the airline return to profitability. Spokesman Hal Myers said: "Essentially, the pilots would view any cost restructuring of the pilot contract to be an investment in Northwest Airlines' future. We would reasonably expect that there would be some opportunity for a return on that investment." A decade ago, Northwest pilots received stock in exchange for accepting concessions. Other companies have established profit-sharing programs. Myers said the ALPA will identify cuts and specify options for future rewards when the company becomes prosperous again. Northwest has lost $1.6 billion since early 2001. "We did not emerge from this meeting with a specific counterproposal," Myers said. But the leaders did agree to work on financial solutions. Northwest spokesman Bill Mellon said, "We look forward to working with our pilots and other Northwest Airlines unions to effect the needed changes to ensure the long-term success of the airline." *************************************************** 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.pscutt.com TnT Webdirectory: http://search.co.tt *********************************************************