Dépêches

Continental Pilots to Rally June 10, 2009 at Continental Stockholders Meeting

Dépèche transmise le 8 juin 2009 par Business Wire

HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Continental Airlines pilots will hold a rally at the Hyatt Regency hotel in downtown Houston on Wednesday, June 10, the location of the Continental Airlines annual stockholders meeting.

The purpose of the rally is to remind Continental management that the sacrifices made by the Continental pilots in their last contract, in which they agreed to annual concessions of over $200M, is a “loan” that is due. The contract became amendable on Dec. 31, 2008. On June 10, the Continental pilots will tell management that the “loan is ‘past due’ – by 161 days and counting.”

The union is seeking a renewed focus and commitment by management so that a new contract can be promptly negotiated.

Background:

The Continental pilots and Continental management entered early negotiations in July 2007. Legal notice to enter formal negotiations under Section 6 of the Railway Labor Act was given by the union to management on April 7, 2008. The parties have completed tentative agreements on nine sections of the contract, each of which was relatively minor, but was preceded by multiple counter-proposals from the Company that required considerable time to reach agreement. Dozens more sections remain untouched, including prime issues such as pay, work rules, benefits and retirement.

Founded in 1931, ALPA is the world’s largest pilot union representing nearly 54,000 cockpit crewmembers at 36 airlines in the U.S. and Canada, including the 5000 Continental pilots. For more information, visit the ALPA website at www.alpa.org.

Editor’s Note:

We are expecting more than 250 uniformed pilots at this event, 50 of which will be positioned in front of the hotel for informational picketing. There will be an opportunity at the site for photos or video footage of pilots in uniform. Capt. Jay Pierce, chairman of the Continental pilots union chapter of the Air Line Pilots Association, Int’l, is available to talk about the reasons for the rally, the message he will be delivering to Continental management on behalf of the nearly 5000 Continental pilots and what the Continental pilots hope to achieve.

Interview availability for Capt. Pierce: onsite at 1200 Louisiana Street from 8:20 am – 9:15 am or via telephone or at the union office at 3808A World Houston Parkway after the rally (from 12:30 to 3:00 pm). Please contact Amy Flanagan if interested.