Pilots at Northwest Airlines and Delta Air Lines, who reached an impasse over seniority issues in the spring, ultimately are willing to submit themselves to binding arbitration to resolve their disputes by the end of the year. But first they'll take a run at melding their seniority lists through "a period of good-faith discussions designed to reach a negotiated agreement," Lee Moak, chairman of the Delta pilots union, said in a Thursday memo to his pilots. A blended pilot seniority list and a joint labor contract are critical for a Delta-Northwest merger to succeed. The Delta pilots' executive council unanimously approved the joint pilot labor agreement Wednesday, and the Northwest council is expected to vote on it today.
See "NWA, Delta pilots set path to seniority", Liz Fedor, Minneapolis Star Tribune, June 26, 2008