(The Associated Press circulated the following article by Joshua Freed on August 18.)
MINNEAPOLIS — A bankruptcy judge said Thursday that he would not block a strike by Northwest Airlines flight attendants, a union victory that could lead to random, unannounced walkouts beginning Aug. 25 if the two sides do not make a deal.
Northwest has said even limited work stoppages could put it out of business for good. It said it planned to appeal the ruling Friday.
U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Allan L. Gropper in New York said that regardless of the danger of a strike to Northwest, labor law gave him no authority to stop one.
The union and the airline both said they would rather make a deal, and Gropper’s ruling eight days before the strike deadline seemed to leave plenty of time. But no talks were scheduled.
The nation’s fifth-largest airline has said it needs $195 million a year in savings from flight attendants, who have twice voted down tentative agreements that cut so deep. The most recent rejection came despite the endorsement of union leaders. After the most recent vote, on July 31, Northwest, with Gropper’s permission, imposed the first contract that flight attendants had rejected, triggering the strike threat.
The new terms included a 21 percent pay cut; flight attendants said it amounts to 40 percent when health insurance increases are added in.