October 16, 2012 - Delta Connection Pilots
Support Pinnacle Pilots’ Quest to Maintain
Industry Standards,
Bankruptcy
Court Hearings Begin today to Consider Company’s
Request to Invalidate CBA.
Delta Connection Pilot Alliance (DCPA), which
includes the pilots of Atlantic Southeast,
Compass, and Pinnacle Airlines, all represented
by the Air Line Pilots Association, Int’l,
expressed their solidarity with the pilots of
Pinnacle, who are engaged in a fight to maintain
key provisions in their contract while also
working to find the cost savings necessary to
help their company emerge from bankruptcy.
On Tuesday, October 16, the U.S. Bankruptcy
Court for the Southern District of New York
began hearing arguments regarding Pinnacle
Airlines’ motion to reject the pilot contract
and impose terms on the more than 2,700 pilots
who fly for the airline if a tentative agreement
cannot be reached.
The terms currently being sought by management
would undercut every other regional carrier
pilot contract and provide Pinnacle Airlines
with an overwhelming competitive advantage over
other carriers who would, in turn, seek
concessions from their pilots.
“Pinnacle management hopes to compel the court
to approve a plan that would strip us of our
current wage rates, work rules, and benefits,
while creating an unfair cost advantage over the
rest of the industry,” said Captain Tom Wychor,
head of the Pinnacle unit of ALPA.
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