Northwest is planning to ask the bankruptcy judge at a November 16 hearing to cancel all union contracts if its workforce does not accept an additional $1.4 billion in concessions. The unions for the pilots and flight attendants agreed in early November to “interim” annual pay cuts of $332 million. The Machinists union, representing ramp workers and ticket agents, has not come to an agreement with the company.

Northwest is demanding that 75 percent of its international flights be serviced by nonunion flight attendants. It plans to eliminate union flight attendants on planes with 77-100 seating capacity in North America. It is also seeking to outsource all ramp worker positions, except at its hubs, and all customer service jobs at its non-hub airports.

Ted Ludwig, president of Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association (AMFA) Local 33, has announced plans for a November 19 rally here to respond to whatever new union-busting moves Northwest Airlines takes with the court’s blessing. AMFA organizes some 4,400 mechanics, cleaners, and custodians at Northwest who have been on strike since August 19.

—Nelson Gonzalez  
 
New Zealand: workers protest aircraft maintenance job cuts
AUCKLAND, New Zealand—Aircraft maintenance engineers and their supporters marched and picketed at Auckland International Airport October 29 to protest the planned layoff by Air New Zealand of hundreds of workers at its aircraft maintenance depots. Around 100 people took part. It was called by the Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union and the Aviation and Marine Engineers Association.

The government holds an 80 percent stake in the airline. The bosses say they will cut over 600 of the 2,100 maintenance positions at the end of the year. Most of the cuts will take place at the Auckland facility. They announced the cuts October 19 after complaining their profits for 2005-2006 would fall by more than half over the previous year. They argue that when it comes to bidding for work in maintaining and refitting long-haul jets—including Air New Zealand’s own fleet—the maintenance operation cannot compete in price with larger bases overseas. Christchurch and Auckland depots, they say, will continue to service short-haul planes.

—Patrick Brown  
 
Bosses at Ford truck plant start timing workers’ bathroom breaks
The bosses at Ford Motors truck plant in Wayne, Michigan, issued a memo October 27 to the workforce stating they will start timing bathroom breaks, the Detroit News reports. The company said that too many workers—members of United Auto Workers Local 900—were going to the can longer than the allotted 48 minutes per shift, slowing down production. Ford reported a loss of $191 million in the third quarter. It plans to close plants, laying off 20,000 workers.

—Arrin Hawkins  
 
New York City school teachers approve union-weakening contract
NEW YORK—After working for 30 months without a contract, New York City school teachers and others represented by the United Federation of Teachers (UFT) voted November 3 by a 63 percent margin for an agreement the UFT leadership had reached with city hall. The pact expires in October 2007. It affects 100,000 union members in city schools.

Teachers will receive a pay increase of 15 percent over the length of the contract. At the same time, the pact includes an extension of the workday and work year, weakening of seniority rights and grievance procedures, and putting more power in the hands of administrators on disciplinary and other matters.

“They are asking for a lot,” said elementary school teacher Nia Mason October 11 outside a UFT delegates meeting. Mason, who has taught for 18 years in the Bronx, said she opposed the provision giving administrators more leeway in assigning teachers to hall patrol or cafeteria duty.

“This contract is unfair,” said Valerie Ramsey, a teacher for four years at Middle School 385 in Brownsville. “They already don’t pay us enough for all the work we do at home grading papers, preparing lesson plans. If I’m on lunch duty, when do I eat?”

“The merit pay is going to pit one teacher against the other,” said Jean Leal, a retiree who taught for 26 years at PS 100 in Queens, an elementary school. She was referring to a new position, the “master teacher,” who will get an extra $10,000 per year based on “merit.”

“If the principal wants to put a paper in your file, it will sit there for three years,” said Ana Anglada, who has taught second grade at PS 106 in Brooklyn for seven years. Until now teachers could answer such written criticism, which can be used in disciplinary action against them, and have their reply included in their file as well.

—Paul Pederson  
 
New York transit workers open contract talks
NEW YORK—Transit workers began contract negotiations October 14 with a rally of 700 unionists. Over 32,000 bus and subway workers are demanding improvements in wages and pensions, and no concessions in their health plans. The Transport Workers Union (TWU) is also calling for a moratorium on disciplinary procedures under the current abusive system. TWU Local 100 president Roger Toussaint said the Metropolitan Transit Authority had taken disciplinary action 15,204 times against workers in the last year alone. The union contract expires December 15.

—Michael Italie
 
 
Related articles:
After 23-day strike, Canada meat packers win union contract
Poultry workers in California walk out again, demand better job conditions
Machinists strike Boeing in three states to defend workers’ health-care benefits
Philadelphia transit workers end strike  
 
 
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