Northwest flight attendants union moves to include Delta

By Kelly Yamanouchi

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The flight attendants union from Northwest Airlines has filed for an election to extend its representation to Delta Air Lines in the Delta-Northwest merger, another step toward resolving labor issues in the combination.

The Association of Flight Attendants, which represents flight attendants from Northwest, submitted a filing to the National Mediation Board on Monday asking it to declare that Delta is a single transportation system for the purposes of labor representation. The move essentially amounts to a request for an election. The process will likely take several weeks, according to the union. An election would likely be scheduled this fall. Delta told its flight attendants in a memo that “this is one of the biggest decisions of your career.”

Delta has pushed the flight attendants union to submit the filing so it can wrap up labor issues in the merger. It’s a high-stakes election for Delta, whose flight attendants have long been non-union. A coalition of anti-union flight attendants at Delta has formed to argue against unionization. Delta flight attendants voted against unionization in elections before the merger.

“We’re Delta flight attendants. We don’t fight with our company,” said anti-union organizer Mathew Palmer.

The election will be one of the largest the National Mediation Board has held, according to the flight attendants union.

Meanwhile, the International Association of Machinists, which represents ground workers from Northwest, sent a letter to Delta chief executive Richard Anderson on Monday asking for a meeting to discuss labor issues “to ensure a smoother election process for all parties.” Delta has also been urging the machinists union to file for an election.