American Airlines employees support merger with US Airways

The three main unions at bankrupt American Airlines on Friday said they have reached a tentative agreement with US Airways, putting pressure on American to start merger talks with its rival.

The unions said they support a possible merger that would preserve jobs that otherwise would be lost if American's parent AMR sticks to its plan to restructure as a stand-alone airline. American so far has shunned merger interest from US Airways.

"We are pleased to confirm our support of a possible merger between our airline and US Airways," the unions representing American's flight attendants, pilots and ground workers said in a statement.

The unions said a deal with US Airways would save at least 6,200 American Airlines' jobs that would have been shed under the company's standalone strategy. American has said it wants to cut 13,000 union jobs, or roughly 15 percent, of its work force, as part of an overall drive to save USD$1.25 billion in annual staff costs.

Pilots at American Airlines are represented by the Allied Pilots Association. The flight attendants are represented by the Association of Professional Flight Attendants. The Transport Workers Union represents seven groups of ground workers at American.

(Reuters)