In an effort to stave off the problems that have hurt other airline mergers, United and Continental have announced that they will try to negotiate contracts with some groups of employees before the merger is finalized. The airlines said that it will probably take at least a year to unite staff into a single workforce. The airlines also said that issues of seniority and representation would be left up to the staff. The airlines will continue to negotiate separately, but will try to reach joint agreements with some groups.
See "Continental, United Eye Joint Bargaining With Unions Before Merger", Doug Cameron, The Wall Street Journal, May 24, 2010