United in Name Only
Mechanics Tire Of Airline's Appeals

By Keith L. Alexander
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, December 5, 2002; Page E01

Kevin Harte has been a mechanic for United Airlines for 16 years, one of 150 mechanics who work on planes at Dulles International Airport. His $70,000 salary supports his wife and three children, and he has gladly driven the 68 miles from Greenmount, Pa., for a job he loves and takes pride in performing.

But the 47-year-old has opposed United's efforts to cut his salary by 7 percent, despite the company's pleading that it needs to slash employee costs as part of its strategy to avoid bankruptcy. He rejected that contention, saying that United's plight is the result of mismanagement and that the union cuts would not keep the airline out of bankruptcy.

United officials had said concessions from the 13,000 mechanics would help persuade the federal Air Transportation Stabilization Board to approve the second-largest carrier's request for a $1.8 billion loan guarantee. Regardless of the board's announcement, without the mechanics' agreement, United's $5.2 billion concession package, which it reached with its other unions, would be voided.

But yesterday the board rejected United's application, saying that even if the mechanics were to approve the new contract, it would not change its decision. It said that United's problems were far deeper than cutting costs would solve and that the airline needed to develop a strategy for increasing revenue. After the decision came out, leaders of the mechanics union canceled the vote, jeopardizing the entire concession package. They said the vote would have been "pointless."

Fifty-seven percent of mechanics last week rejected a slightly different version of concessions -- even after pilots and flight attendants agreed to cuts -- because they were angry about how United has been run, and they were not afraid of losing their jobs. Mechanics said they could find jobs at auto-body or other shops.

"There's plenty of technical jobs around," Harte said. "I might not be making $70,000 a year, but even if I make $40,000 a year, I can still make it. The mechanics aren't afraid of losing our jobs. We don't have that much to lose. We're tired of it."

A group of mechanics from Dulles, including Harte, agreed to talk yesterday about their frustrations. As they see it, United was ruined by years of missteps, including an ill-fated attempt to buy US Airways. They also said they have been poorly represented by their current union, the International Association of Machinists, which has faced a long-running challenge from the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association. They said they were angry that they went eight years without a pay increase and with how their union has handled negotiations with United.

"The union has been holding us back for a long, long time," Harte said. "The IAM is a leadership union, not a membership union. The leadership takes care of their own. They sit with their six-figure incomes and negotiate our five-figure pay cuts. And ultimately, the airline goes out of business."

Joe Tiberi, a spokesman for the machinists union, said that is not the opinion of most of the rank and file.

Others in the group of Dulles mechanics said they were so tired of the long-running labor battles at United that they were willing to see if they could do better in bankruptcy court.

"At this point, we've taken so many concessions in the past that I think we're at a point to decide to let a bankruptcy judge decide what our life will be like in the future," said mechanic Gary Barrian, 45, who has worked for the airline since 1984. "We'll take that chance."

Dennis Sanderson, 53, agreed. After 13 years, he's suddenly working the midnight shift because of downsizing. Sanderson has been through this before. He was a mechanic for Eastern Airlines, which folded in 1991 after years of strife between management and labor.

"It took Eastern several years to fall; it's taken United about two," said Sanderson, who runs a mechanics' Web site.

The mechanics know that bankruptcy could result in more layoffs. "Of course we're all concerned. Nobody wants to lose their job. We just feel like we've been misrepresented and taken advantage of, and we're fed up with it," said Jon White, 37.

United board member John K. Van de Kamp said: "There has been some anger directed towards their union. I'm sure there's frustration on a lot of different fronts."

"It's much preferable to stay out of bankruptcy," Van de Kamp said. "You get into bankruptcy and the cuts, and you don't know where you're going to end up. That's up to the courts and creditors. The chances are the kinds of cuts to be made would be greater in bankruptcy than out of bankruptcy."

Much of the resentment between the mechanics and United dates back to 1994, when the employees agreed to millions of dollars in pay cuts in exchange for 55 percent ownership of the airline and two board seats. Many mechanics have been unable to exercise their shares because of the way the agreement was structured. Now the shares are worth about $3. If United files for bankruptcy, the value of the shares would most certainly be wiped out, but these workers said that's a risk worth taking.

Furthermore, United's two-year campaign to try to acquire US Airways, an effort struck down last year by the government, caused the airline to ignore operations and allowed low-cost competitors such as Southwest Airlines to steal market share, asserted the mechanics.

The mechanics are also watching US Airways, which filed for bankruptcy protection in August and plans to emerge in March. When it filed, the airline persuaded its employees to agree to about $1 billion in pay cuts. At the time, the airline said if the unions did not agree on the concessions, their contracts would be wiped out in bankruptcy court.

But last month, US Airways said it would approach its labor unions for another $1.6 billion in cuts and would lay off another 2,500 workers.

"It's easy to see that what's happening with them could happen with us," said White, who has worked for United for 16 years. "Management is already back asking for more cuts. Why give them anything?"