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Walkout by Mesaba pilots nears
by Jeff Horwich, Minnesota Public Radio
December 5, 2003

The Airline Pilots Association opened its strike operations center on the 10th floor of a Bloomington office building. (MPR Photo/Jeff Horwich)

Pilots and managers at Mesaba Airlines must decide whether to allow an arbitrator to design a new contract, or to clear the way for a possible strike. A walkout could disrupt air service to smaller communities in Minnesota and other parts of the country where Mesaba flies. The Minneapolis-based carrier flies connecting routes for Northwest Airlines. On Friday the National Mediation Board declared the two sides were at an impasse, and more talks would accomplish nothing.

Bloomington, Minn. — Three more days at the bargaining table could not solve a contract dispute now well into its third year.

Both sides were clear they intended this week's talks to be their last. In October, the pilots union asked the National Mediation Board to declare negotiations at an impass, and submit the dispute for arbitration. Management made the same request late last month.

	The money's the thing, Pierson says

The executive board of the pilots union will meet on Monday to discuss whether to accept arbitration. If either side rejects it, the 30-day clock starts ticking. After that a strike can begin.

"We did receive an offer of arbitration this morning from the National Mediation Board. We're reviewing it right now to determine what our decision is going to be, and we'll provide further information as we have it," said Mesaba spokesman Dave Jackson.

Mesaba says in a tough industry environment, the airline must keep its costs down to remain a competitive option for Northwest. The company faces an impending decision by Northwest Airlines on whether to take back 31 jet aircraft it leases to Mesaba.

Northwest officials say the jets are inefficient, but they bring in about 40 percent of Mesaba's revenue. Northwest has not said how, or whether, they will be replaced. The decision should come by Dec. 15. The outcome could affect any further talks that occur during the 30-day cooling off period.

This week the pilots union showed the news media that it is ready and willing to strike. The Airline Pilots Association opened its strike operations center on the 10th floor of a Bloomington office building. Before a bank of windows overlooking the airport, off-duty pilots watch computers showing air traffic wherever Mesaba flies -- 600 routes across the Midwest, the East, and South.

Any plane that shows up on a Mesaba route will be crossing a picket line, and its pilot could be subject to union sanction.

	Tom Wychor

Union spokesman Kris Pierson says Mesaba pilots deserve a wage competitive with other regional carriers like Comair and Air Wisconsin. Mesaba salaries start at $17,000 a year.

"Close to half our pilots make less than $32,500 a year. This is not fair compensation for highly trained, impeccable pilots," Pierson said.

Pilots also want job security provisions. Last year Mesaba's parent company was purchased Big Sky Airlines. It's one of the few carriers, the union says, where pilots work cheaper than at Mesaba.

"It creates a pressure point on our pilots that just never goes away," according to Tom Wychor is chair of the Mesaba pilots union. "And you end up with careers that fundamentally are worthless, that don't have the security, don't have the pay or the work rules that you need to have a career."

The union says the possibility of losing Mesaba's jets may be a pressure tactic by Northwest, but it will not affect their contract demands. Northwest owns 29 percent of Mesaba's parent company and much of the company's leadership has Northwest roots. Northwest officials referred all questions to Mesaba.

Mesaba is the only option for air travelers in most of outstate Minnesota. Lisa Paxton has been following the negotiations as head of the Brainerd Lakes Area Chambers of Commerce. She says area manufacturers and small businesses use the airport as their gateway to the rest of the world.

"We're two-and-a-half hour drive from the Twin Cities metro area, so certainly people can drive to the Twin Cities, but we've been working very hard to raise awareness about the fly local options. So we'd be very disappointed with a strike by Mesaba," Paxton said.

If there is a walkout, the earliest a strike could begin is Jan. 7, one of the slowest travel times of the year.

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