The three largest unions at American Airlines have agreed to support a takeover from US Airways. The unions expect that the deal, which has not yet been finalized, would lead to better terms for them than if American Airlines went through bankruptcy alone. The airline will ask a court to void its labor contracts and allow the company to cut 13,000 jobs later this month. A ruling is not expected until June. The company says that cutting labor costs is necessary for the health of the airline, while unions say that the company is taking out its financial problems on employees who have done nothing wrong. The airline is in talks with some of the unions.
See "AMR Unions to Support US Airways Takeover", Zachary R. Mider, Jeffrey McCracken and Mary Schlangenstein, Business Week, April 18, 2012