Originally Posted by
rickair7777
Worth noting that BK companies, even if allowed to reject/modify a CBA do not get carte blanche. Typically the judge will impose an "industry average" contract, although if it were necessary to make the numbers work in the reorganization proposal the court might cut deeper. In this case the company would argue for the average of the ULCC industry (SY, F9, G4, Breeze, Avelo), not the average of DL, UA, AA, and SW.
Courts seem to like snap-back provisions, so you might suck it up for a while and then get some or all of the original contract back after things turn around post-BK.
Also the company has to jump through some hoops before it can even go there with a CBA, and that would take at least some amount of time (11 USC 1113). If the company starts trying to negotiate a concessionary CBA that's a good sign that Ch.11 is right around the corner.
Companies generally negotiate lower contracts in BK instead of having them imposed by the courts, because the courts will take too long. Management will threaten numerous negative outcomes if a concessionary contract is not agreed to. Including furloughs, downgrades, stagnantion, closing of bases or closing the doors completely. Usually when this happens the entire industry is in a downturn, so pilots don't have the option to go to other airlines similar to the post 9/11 where almost all airlines furloughed and no pilots were hired at Majors for 4 years, and even then there were only a few majors hiring, not including regionals and LCCs.
Now is different because this is a company specific problem and most other airlines are hiring, so there might be less resistance to accepting a subpar contract.