US Airways pilots protest lack of resolution five years after America West merger

The US Airline Pilots Assn. representing 5,200 US Airways pilots staged a protest yesterday at Philadelphia International to highlight the fact that their negotiations with airline management over a new, unified labor accord remain unresolved. In particular, the seniority lists of US and the former America West Airlines still aren't integrated five years after the carriers merged. USAPA President Mike Cleary said, "From the pilots' perspective, the carrier is operating as two separate airlines."

The airline and union are currently engaged in talks overseen by the US National Mediation Board; pilots would not legally be allowed to take any work action unless they request and receive an NMB release from talks. A court ruling in June essentially allowed USAPA to negotiate on behalf of all of the carrier's pilots.

At the time of the merger, both pilot work groups were represented by the Air Line Pilots Assn. and integration of the two seniority lists was conducted under an ALPA-sanctioned arbitration process. However, the former US pilots, the larger of the two work groups by a significant margin, disputed the arbitrator's decision and voted to decertify ALPA and create a new union, USAPA (ATW Daily News, June 7).