Unions file for votes at Delta
With a more favorable election procedure now in place, two major unions have filed for elections at Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines.
The outcomes will settle the last big labor issue lingering from the merger with Northwest Airlines.
The Association of Flight Attendants, which represents flight attendants from Northwest, filed for an election among all attendants at the combined airline. The International Association of Machinists, which represents many Northwest ground workers, filed for an election among ramp workers and customer service agents.
All those groups are non-union at Delta, which estimates the combined carrier has about 16,500 customer service agents and 14,000 ramp workers.
The election among nearly 21,000 flight attendants would be one of the largest groups ever polled in a union election at an airline.
The tunions asked the National Mediation Board, which oversees airline labor matters, to declare Delta and Northwest a single carrier for purposes of labor representation, which would trigger the election process. It could be several weeks before an election is scheduled.
The Delta-Northwest merger closed in 2008.
Settling the issue was effectively delayed because the Mediation Board last year proposed a key change in how voting is conducted.
Under previous rules, a union had to gain approval from a majority of all eligible workers, which meant workers who did not vote were effectively counted as being against unionization. But under the new rule, which took effect Thursday, union votes are determined by a majority of those who cast ballots, rather than of the entire worker group. That’s expected to make it easier for unions to organize workers.
The rule change went into effect after a judge ruled against an airline group seeking to stop it. The Air Transport Association, representing Delta and other airlines, said it had not yet decided whether to appeal. Delta has voiced an interest in moving on.
Delta spokeswoman Gina Laughlin said in a written statement, “we hope all eligible employees will cast a ballot and make their voice heard.” Delta has long been the least unionized major U.S. airline, and previous union drives among its rampers and flight attendants have failed.
Also Thursday, the Mediation Board said the Teamsters union filed for an election to represent mechanics at Atlanta-based Atlantic Southeast Airlines, a Delta Connection contract carrier owned by SkyWest.
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