http://www.reportonbusiness.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080725.waircanada0725/BNStory/Business/?page=rss&id=RTGAM.20080725.waircanada0725

Globe and Mail July 25, 2008 at 4:19 PM EDT

Ottawa rejects Air Canada's request for layoffs

Ross Marowits

Montreal -- Federal Labour Minister Jean-Pierre Blackburn has rejected Air Canada [AC.A-T]'s request for a waiver that would have allowed the airline to lay off flight attendants Nov. 1 without first setting up a joint union-company committee to examine ways to ease the impact of the cuts.

"After carefully examining the application, I have decided that there are insufficient grounds to grant a waiver to Air Canada," Mr. Blackburn said in a statement Friday.

The minister has offered the airline and the union access to mediators and instructed department officials to monitor the situation to ensure that any affected Air Canada employees receive their entitlements under the Canada Labour Code.

Under the code, the airline must create a joint committee with employees to try to minimize the impact of the Montreal-based carrier's planned streamlining of about 2,000 jobs, including more than 600 flight attendants, from its 24,000-employee work force.

AA Flight attendant wins $1.2 million in suit for harassment & discrimination
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/07/18/BA7S11R9JJ.DTL&hw=discrimination&sn=001&sc=1000

Flight attendant wins $1.2 million in suit
Bob Egelko, Chronicle Staff Writer
Friday, July 18, 2008

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A federal court jury in San Francisco awarded more than $1.2 million in damages Thursday to a former American Airlines flight attendant who said the airline concocted reasons to fire her after she complained about an assault by a passenger.
The eight-member U.S. District Court jury found that American Airlines fired Greta Anderson in 2005 at least in part because of the company's belief that she was mentally disabled, even though she was able to do the job she had held since 1976. The jury awarded her $238,000 for wage losses and $1 million for emotional distress.
The airline said it dismissed Anderson for insubordination because she disobeyed supervisors' orders by repeatedly asking a psychiatrist for a copy of his report that found her unfit for duty. Company lawyers were unavailable for comment late Thursday, but Anderson's attorney, Gregory Redmond, said the airline's position during the trial left little doubt that it would appeal the verdict.

US Airline Bosses Want Regulation of Market In Oil To Survive

Date: July 11, 2008 7:13:11 AM PDT

An open letter to all airline customers

Dear

Last week, crude oil hit an all-time high of $146, and the skyrocketing cost of fuel is impacting our customers, our employees, the communities we serve, and the economy as a whole. United, and the majority of other major U.S. airlines, are asking our most loyal customers to join us in pushing for legislation to add more transparency and disclosure in the oil markets. Please see the attached open letter from the leaders of the U.S. airline industry.

An Open letter to All Airline Customers:

Our country is facing a possible sharp economic downturn because of skyrocketing oil and fuel prices, but by pulling together, we can all do something to help now.

For airlines, ultra-expensive fuel means thousands of lost jobs and severe reductions in air service to both large and small communities. To the broader economy, oil prices mean slower activity and widespread economic pain. This pain can be alleviated, and that is why we are taking the extraordinary step of writing this joint letter to our customers. Since high oil prices are partly a response to normal market forces, the nation needs to focus on increased energy supplies and conservation. However, there is another side to this story because normal market forces are being dangerously amplified by poorly regulated market speculation.

Strike action hits German flights
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7493123.stm
Page last updated at 10:50 GMT, Monday, 7 July 2008 11:50 UK
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Strike action hits German flights

Lufthansa warned that further flights could be cancelled throughout the day
More than 200 flights in Germany and Europe have been cancelled by strike action at Lufthansa's regional carriers CityLine and Eurowings.
Members of the Vereinigung Cockpit pilots' union walked out at 2200 GMT on Sunday in a 24-hour strike over pay.
Flights from all major German airports, especially the hubs at Frankfurt and Munich, have been affected.
It comes less than a week after flights were hit by a strike by staff such as baggage handlers and check-in workers.
Lufthansa urged passengers to call before heading to the airport and consider alternative means of transport.
"We find it very unfortunate that passengers are bearing the brunt of this," a Lufthansa spokesperson said.
The airline warned that further flights could be cancelled throughout the day.

Flight Attendants Face High-Pressure Cabins : Growing Nightmare For Airline Workers
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=92222458

BUSINESS
Flight Attendants Face High-Pressure Cabins

by Frank Langfitt

Audio for this story will be available at approx. 9:00 a.m. ET

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Frank Langfitt/NPR
Erin Gailey has flown for Alaska Airlines for 25 years. She says the job of a flight attendant has changed dramatically.

Morning Edition, July 7, 2008 ·Flight attendants have one of the tougher jobs in America these days. Airline companies are reeling from high oil prices, and new baggage fees are annoying more customers. Caught in the middle is the flight attendant, the public face of an industry that's on the ropes.

When Stefannee Steffenhagen started working for Air Wisconsin — a US Airways commuter service — several years ago, she thought it was the beginning of what she called "that little-girl dream."

But the reality of the job doesn't quite measure up. In her brief career, Steffenhagen has seen a lot of change.

Today, she has fewer amenities to offer passengers, and they're increasingly angry about it. She says one of her toughest jobs is just getting women to put their purses in the overhead compartment.

http://www.wsws.org/articles/2008/jun2008/qant-j28.shtml
Australia: Once again unions call off Qantas stoppages

By Terry Cook
28 June 2008

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For the third time in six weeks, union leaders have called off industrial action by 1,500 Qantas engineers in a bid to prevent a potentially explosive confrontation with the airline and the Rudd Labor government over the company’s demand for cuts to wages and conditions.

The Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) intervened again last Thursday, arranging another round of negotiations on the new workplace agreement to commence on Monday. The truce was offered to Qantas despite the airline’s adamant refusal to budge from its position and its use of scab labour during this week’s rolling stoppages, which forced the cancellation of about 100 domestic flights.

Australian Licensed Airline Engineers Association (ALAEA) federal secretary Steve Purvinas said: “Hopefully we can sit down for the week and reach an agreement.” Earlier in the year, the ALAEA signed a deal with Qantas to impose a 3 percent annual pay rise limit, which is far below the soaring cost of living. The engineers threw out the agreement in an April ballot, and are fighting for a 5 percent increase.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7468583.stm

Page last updated at 06:40 GMT, Monday, 23 June 2008 07:40 UK

Qantas flights grounded by strike

Qantas is being squeezed by the rising cost of fuel
Six Qantas flights have been cancelled and 18 cancellations are expected on Tuesday as engineers begin a series of strikes over pay.
The Australian Licensed Aircraft Engineers Association (ALAEA) last week announced action in five major cities after failing to agree a pay deal.
The ALAEA had demanded a 5% wage rise for 1,500 engineers, but the airline has offered 3%.
The wage demands come as Qantas is being squeezed by high fuel costs.
The strikes currently affect only domestic Australian flights.
Turbulent times
Qantas executive general manager for people Kevin Brown said that the airline had a "range of contingencies" to deal with the disruptions and that affected passengers would be placed on other flights.
The dispute is expected to continue as union leaders argue that Qantas chiefs have shown no flexibility in meeting their demands.
Qantas, like many airlines, is struggling to deal with a consumer downturn and surging fuel prices.
The firm has already announced a pay freeze for senior bosses and cancelled flights on key routes.

http://www.solidarity-us.org/node/1473

A union Defeated at United Air Lines
— Malik Miah and Terry O'Rourke
THE APRIL 1 certification of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) was no April Fool’s joke for the 8600 eligible mechanic and related United Airlines (UAL) employees who voted in the March 31 representational election. The Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association (AMFA), which served the members for nearly five years under very difficult circumstances in the aviation industry, lost the vote by 4,113 to 2,631.
Many of us were surprised by the 75% participation of eligible voters (which included laid-off employees, some over six years) and the IBT’s three-to-two margin of victory. The IBT is known for corruption and a lack of internal democracy. Its leaders arrogantly stated that it supported secrecy in its dealing with UAL and called AMFA’s open negotiations with member observers a “circus.”
Many members, even supporters of the IBT in San Francisco, have praised AMFA’s communications. Their main charge was that AMFA did not have the resources to fight outsourcing and take on the company, pointing in particular to how AMFA failed to win the strike at Northwest Airlines in 2005-06. They also blamed AMFA for not defending the defined benefit pension plans lost during bankruptcy in 2005.

Delta flight attendants accuse management of suppressing union voters

http://www.reuters.com/article/blogBurst/investing?type=hotStocksNews&w1=B7ovpm21IaDoL40ZFnNfGe&w2=B7pJeHult9GszE37UXlSpmUm&src=blogBurst_investingNews&bbPostId=Cz4pcoaX1j6FbAMIDBuOwMUSCz2WXdgnjR4I4BEdQ8oJSU1CC&bbParentWidgetId=B7gSUbux1hpbz8uOa7TWsLnV
Delta flight attendants accuse management of suppressing union voters
POSTED: Thursday, May 01, 2008
FROM BLOG: Cabin Crew News - News for and about flight attendants, by Bobbie Sullivan, PhD

The following blog post is from an independent writer and is not connected with Reuters News. The opinions and views expressed herein are those of the author and are not endorsed by Reuters.com.

Flight attendants at Delta Air Lines voted earlier this year to unionize. A majority of Delta flight attendants already have submitted signature cards to the National Mediation Board (NMB), indicating that they wanted to be represented by a formal collective bargaining unit, even though Delta management has openly opposed the move toward flight attendant unionization.

Last week, Delta flight attendants began the next phase, casting their votes to decide whether the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA) will be certified as their collective bargaining representative. The voting process, carried out under the supervision of the NMB, will continue until May 28, 2008. According to the rules, a majority of the entire flight attendant workforce must cast a vote in order for the election to be valid. Anything less than this majority turnout will void the election entirely, even if the union gets a clear majority of the votes cast.

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080521/airlines_shareholders.html?

American workers protest management at annual meeting
Wednesday May 21, 9:20 am ET
By David Koenig, AP Business Writer
American Airlines workers protest against management outside AMR's annual shareholders meeting

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) -- American Airlines pilots and flight attendants are taking their protest against management to the shareholders who own the company.
Hundreds of airline workers took part in a union-organized protest Wednesday outside the hall where shareholders of AMR Corp. were scheduled to meet.

The unions are unhappy because there's been little progress in negotiations for new contracts, while several hundred managers up to the CEO got stock-based bonuses last month.

The flight attendants union is calling on the airline's top officials to resign for accepting the stock, which the company considers part of executive pay. The pilots union blames management for the grounding of about 3,300 flights last month after federal regulators forced the company to redo electrical wiring on many planes.

"We've got to change course. This isn't working," said Lloyd Hill, president of the pilots' union, which blames management for ills ranging from parts shortages to low employee morale. "Maybe American Airlines could start by treating employees as allies, not adversaries."