Southwest and American Respond to Maintenance Workers’ Public Disputes
Photo Credit: Southwest is negotiating with its mechanics union. Pictured is one of the airline's Boeing 737s in Salt Lake City. Southwest Airlines / Stephen M. Keller
Skift Take
It is not rare for an airline's operation to suffer when a major work group is unhappy with contract negotiations. Pilots and maintenance technicians have considerable authority to defer an issue, or to demand it be fixed right away.
American Airlines and Southwest Airlines are locked in nasty battles with unions representing mechanics, but the CEOs of both companies sought Tuesday to defuse controversy, saying they have no ill-will toward their mechanics, even if they say they're sometimes puzzled by the actions of labor leaders.
"Our mechanics are superb," Southwest CEO Gary Kelly said Tuesday at an investor conference in New York. "They work very hard, they do an outstanding job and they deserve an updated contract and that is and has been my desire."
His opinions on the union representing them, the American Mechanics Fraternal Association, are another matter. On March 1, Southwest filed suit against American Mechanics Fraternal Association in federal court in Dallas, alleging it organized a job action to hamper Southwest's operations. The airline said some mechanics have drawn attention to minor issues they normally would defer.
The union disputes Southwest's claims, saying its members have a duty to
