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'The Seafarer'
Judge delays decision on barring strike at Mesaba
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U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Gregory Kishel decided Tuesday night to give himself a few more days before ruling on Mesaba Airlines' request to block its workers from striking.
Management at Mesaba argued in a hearing that a strike injunction was crucial to the carrier's survival because it would allow the regional airline to impose labor cost cuts of 17.5 percent on its employees without risking a work stoppage.
"This court must act to prevent the villagers from burning down the castle," Mesaba attorney Tim Thornton said.
Mesaba President John Spanjers testified that Mesaba had tried to slash its labor costs by this past Sunday, because that was the deadline set by the creditors committee.
If labor cuts were not achieved by that date, the creditors intended to file a motion to "cease flight operations" and liquidate Mesaba, Spanjers said.
If Kishel had granted Mesaba a strike injunction, management had planned to cut wages today.
Attorneys for the pilots, flight attendants and mechanics unions argued that the federal Norris-LaGuardia Act, which limits the power of federal judges, prevents Kishel from issuing an injunction.
Liz Fedor • 612-673-7709 • lfedor@startribune.com
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