Northwest Airlines has requested that a bankruptcy judge allows it to void its labor contracts if its employee unions do not agree to concessions worth $1.4 billion a year. Companies in bankruptcy can use court protection as leverage to extract savings from their labor forces that might otherwise be unattainable. The Air Line Pilots Association said Northwest's action was expected and that the union hoped to reach a deal with Northwest.
See "Airline Seeks Permission to Void Labor Pacts", Reuters, The New York Times, October 12, 2005