Labor peace key for Comair
'For our own sanity, we need to have this done with'
BY ALEXANDER COOLIDGE | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER
ERLANGER - New Comair president Don Bornhorst sees new urgency in settling the bankrupt company's labor situation because the regional airline is being shut out of new flying because of the conflict with its flight attendants.
"There's no secret to why we're being excluded - we cannot bid competitively," he said. Continental shut Comair out of the running for some of its business earlier this month because the local airline still hasn't won concessions from the attendants.
Two months after being ordered back to the bargaining table, Comair asked a judge late last night to consider for a second time tossing out its flight attendants' contract after multiple rounds of additional talks that have not delivered a contract.
Bornhorst insisted the airline is open to further talks but said it is also running out of time as its corporate parent, Delta Air Lines, and others dangle potential new routes.
"I think the world of the flight attendants," said Bornhorst, whose experience includes a two-year stint as Comair's senior vice president of customers, where he directly oversaw customer service agents and flight attendants. "I apologize we had to go through this process."
Bornhorst said Comair has backed off its $8.9 million concessions goal from the flight attendants, after a bankruptcy judge ruled in April that sticking to this target meant the airline wasn't bargaining in good faith.
Comair’s latest offer to the union was to cut costs by $7.9 million, while it says the flight attendants’ last offer was about $6.2 million. Comair officials said the latest offer would have cut the average flight attendant’s base pay from $29,950 to $27,700 – a 7.5 percent cut – or reduce total average pay and benefits by $3,700.
As for the $18.3 million in concessions from pilots and mechanics that are contingent on specific givebacks from the flight attendants, Bornhorst said he will seek an OK from those unions to implement their agreed-upon cuts with a lower amount from the flight attendants.
Yet the flight attendants union, Teamsters Local 513, accuses Comair negotiators of a "two-faced strategy" of claiming its not seeking the $8.9 million they originally sought, while continuing to seek cuts as severe as before.
"It doesn't matter what they call it - the fact is their demands still exceed $8.9 million," said Teamsters spokeswoman Victoria Gray.
FLEET IS SHRINKING
Bornhorst insists progress was made in the most recent talks with the flight attendants though no deal was reached.
"Time is no longer on our side as Delta now focuses on an exit from bankruptcy," he said.
He noted that Delta as well as rivals Northwest, United and Continental are looking for regional carriers to handle their feeder traffic for their mainline operations.
He said Comair's bids contingent on incomplete cost reductions are losing the airline potential business because other airlines have more predictable costs.
As part of Delta's restructuring, Bornhorst said Comair's fleet is also shrinking. Last fall, Delta said it would cut 30 aircraft out of Comair's 174-jet fleet. Six have been returned to leaseholders, but the remaining 24 are expected to exit Comair's fleet after the busy summer season. That will leave Comair with 144 jets.
Comair officials said the airline jettisoned 600 to 1,000 jobs in December in anticipation of a smaller fleet. No further employees or routes are expected to be cut.
To grow Comair's fleet, the airline needs to win new flying, Bornhorst said. Delta's new pilot contract gives the Atlanta airline the option of farming out the flying of 70- to 76-seat jets to regional or other contractors next year. But who ultimately flies those aircraft is being decided now, Bornhorst said.
RESTRUCTURING HITS HALFWAY
Despite the dispute with flight attendants and pending cuts agreed to by other unions, Bornhorst said Comair is more than halfway finished with its restructuring. He said Comair will participate with Delta in restructuring of terms on the leases on Comair's jets.
Although U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Adlai Hardin's April 26 refusal to reject Comair's flight attendant contract was seen as a rebuke of the airline, Bornhorst noted that Hardin left the door open for the company to ask again to void the labor agreement. He also noted the judge acknowledged concessions from the flight attendants were needed to restructure the airline.
A hearing was set for July 10-11 on the new request.
Bornhorst conceded Delta may seek to sell off Comair in the future but said turning the regional subsidiary's operations around first is the top priority.
"It's dangerous to speculate," he said. "Restructuring is needed no matter what - that's the focus."
Bornhorst said he won't seek additional concessions from any employee group. Although total payroll cuts were originally targeted at $42 million per year, Bornhorst said the company will try to get as close as it can to that number.
"I'm not going to ask them to make additional sacrifices than they've already agreed to," he said, alluding to the $17.3 million and $1 million in concessions, respectively, approved by the pilots and mechanics unions that have yet to take effect. "For our own sanity, we need to have this done with."
'For our own sanity, we need to have this done with'
BY ALEXANDER COOLIDGE | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER
ERLANGER - New Comair president Don Bornhorst sees new urgency in settling the bankrupt company's labor situation because the regional airline is being shut out of new flying because of the conflict with its flight attendants.
"There's no secret to why we're being excluded - we cannot bid competitively," he said. Continental shut Comair out of the running for some of its business earlier this month because the local airline still hasn't won concessions from the attendants.
Two months after being ordered back to the bargaining table, Comair asked a judge late last night to consider for a second time tossing out its flight attendants' contract after multiple rounds of additional talks that have not delivered a contract.
Bornhorst insisted the airline is open to further talks but said it is also running out of time as its corporate parent, Delta Air Lines, and others dangle potential new routes.
"I think the world of the flight attendants," said Bornhorst, whose experience includes a two-year stint as Comair's senior vice president of customers, where he directly oversaw customer service agents and flight attendants. "I apologize we had to go through this process."
Bornhorst said Comair has backed off its $8.9 million concessions goal from the flight attendants, after a bankruptcy judge ruled in April that sticking to this target meant the airline wasn't bargaining in good faith.
Comair’s latest offer to the union was to cut costs by $7.9 million, while it says the flight attendants’ last offer was about $6.2 million. Comair officials said the latest offer would have cut the average flight attendant’s base pay from $29,950 to $27,700 – a 7.5 percent cut – or reduce total average pay and benefits by $3,700.
As for the $18.3 million in concessions from pilots and mechanics that are contingent on specific givebacks from the flight attendants, Bornhorst said he will seek an OK from those unions to implement their agreed-upon cuts with a lower amount from the flight attendants.
Yet the flight attendants union, Teamsters Local 513, accuses Comair negotiators of a "two-faced strategy" of claiming its not seeking the $8.9 million they originally sought, while continuing to seek cuts as severe as before.
"It doesn't matter what they call it - the fact is their demands still exceed $8.9 million," said Teamsters spokeswoman Victoria Gray.
FLEET IS SHRINKING
Bornhorst insists progress was made in the most recent talks with the flight attendants though no deal was reached.
"Time is no longer on our side as Delta now focuses on an exit from bankruptcy," he said.
He noted that Delta as well as rivals Northwest, United and Continental are looking for regional carriers to handle their feeder traffic for their mainline operations.
He said Comair's bids contingent on incomplete cost reductions are losing the airline potential business because other airlines have more predictable costs.
As part of Delta's restructuring, Bornhorst said Comair's fleet is also shrinking. Last fall, Delta said it would cut 30 aircraft out of Comair's 174-jet fleet. Six have been returned to leaseholders, but the remaining 24 are expected to exit Comair's fleet after the busy summer season. That will leave Comair with 144 jets.
Comair officials said the airline jettisoned 600 to 1,000 jobs in December in anticipation of a smaller fleet. No further employees or routes are expected to be cut.
To grow Comair's fleet, the airline needs to win new flying, Bornhorst said. Delta's new pilot contract gives the Atlanta airline the option of farming out the flying of 70- to 76-seat jets to regional or other contractors next year. But who ultimately flies those aircraft is being decided now, Bornhorst said.
RESTRUCTURING HITS HALFWAY
Despite the dispute with flight attendants and pending cuts agreed to by other unions, Bornhorst said Comair is more than halfway finished with its restructuring. He said Comair will participate with Delta in restructuring of terms on the leases on Comair's jets.
Although U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Adlai Hardin's April 26 refusal to reject Comair's flight attendant contract was seen as a rebuke of the airline, Bornhorst noted that Hardin left the door open for the company to ask again to void the labor agreement. He also noted the judge acknowledged concessions from the flight attendants were needed to restructure the airline.
A hearing was set for July 10-11 on the new request.
Bornhorst conceded Delta may seek to sell off Comair in the future but said turning the regional subsidiary's operations around first is the top priority.
"It's dangerous to speculate," he said. "Restructuring is needed no matter what - that's the focus."
Bornhorst said he won't seek additional concessions from any employee group. Although total payroll cuts were originally targeted at $42 million per year, Bornhorst said the company will try to get as close as it can to that number.
"I'm not going to ask them to make additional sacrifices than they've already agreed to," he said, alluding to the $17.3 million and $1 million in concessions, respectively, approved by the pilots and mechanics unions that have yet to take effect. "For our own sanity, we need to have this done with."
