Flight attendants sue US Airways over furloughs = = = = Thursday January 8, 5:54 PM EST = (Updates with company reaction) By John Crawley WASHINGTON, Jan 8 (Reuters) - Flight attendants at US Airways (UAIR) sued= the beleaguered carrier on Thursday over plans to furlough more employee= s, another major flashpoint in the deteriorating relationship between man= agement and the airline's labor unions. The Association of Flight Attendants said the company violated the contra= ct by not seeking out voluntary furloughs before announcing a new round o= f cuts and other staffing changes two weeks ago. The No. 7 airline said it was cutting 200 flight attendants to make room = for more senior attendants coming back to work after accepting temporary,= voluntary furloughs as the airline struggled with downsizing. = US Airways also said it was reclassifying the furlough status of an addit= ional 352 flight attendants from voluntary to involuntary, which diminish= es their chances of returning to work. "Management seems to be unnecessarily creating problems with its workers = at a very delicate time for the airline," said Perry Hayes, an executive = with the flight attendants' union. "Hopefully, US Airways management will= work with us instead of against us in resolving this major dispute." The suit was filed in the U.S. District Court in Pittsburgh, where US Air= ways has a hub. The attendants want a temporary order to prevent the comp= any from moving forward with the furloughs affecting 552 workers. Tension between US Airways management and its unionized employees has sur= ged in recent weeks after labor groups said it would not consider new con= cessions. The company is seeking work rule and productivity changes to lower costs = and stay viable after emerging from bankruptcy protection in March. US Airways classified the rift over flight attendant furloughs as a minor= dispute and said it has asked a federal judge in Virginia to uphold the = company's claim that the issue should be settled through arbitration. "We believe that these furloughs were done in conjunction with agreements= we have in the contract. These are not further reductions in the head co= unt," said US Airways spokesman David Castelveter. Castelveter said the flight attendant head count would remain at roughly = 5,400. = =A92003 Reuters Limited. = Roger EWROPS