GM Auto Dealerships Seek Special Committee From GM Bankruptcy Trustee

/PRNewswire/ -- On behalf of terminated and soon-to-be-terminated GM auto dealerships, former U.S. Attorney G. Douglas Jones dispatched a letter yesterday to General Motors bankruptcy trustee Diana G. Adams asking that a special committee be established to protect the interests of terminated GM auto dealerships who operate as separate operating entities and have provided hundreds of millions in tax revenues to state and local governments.

"The best way to at least create a seat at the table for the affected dealers and the claims they represent in the bankruptcy is the appointment of a Terminated Dealers Committee," wrote Jones. "The significant interest these dealers have in the orderly bankruptcy process and the interplay of the dealers' rights under both bankruptcy law and applicable state laws is vital. The appointment of such a committee is crucial in these opening days as important decisions concerning the future of General Motors are being reached."

GM announced last month that they intended to slash auto dealerships by 42 percent from 2008 to 2010 levels. Dealerships will be reduced by 2,641 locations, from 6,246 to 3,605.

The proposal came in reaction to auto dealerships being left out of the restructuring. "Unlike many of the major affected players, including the United States government, United Auto Workers, major suppliers, bond holders and multi-million dollar pension funds, these small town dealerships risk having no voice in the General Motors bankruptcy," Jones wrote.

Jones added, "It is important to note that these dealerships are wholly-owned and separate operating entities apart from General Motors. In fact, many of these dealerships are operating companies that have successfully been in existence and turning a profit for years. For example, our client, Abercrombie Chevrolet has been in existence for over 52 years and has been a family owned General Motors dealership operating in Hartselle, Alabama. The Abercrombie family, along with owners and families throughout this country, are being severely impacted by the General Motors bankruptcy."

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Delta Technicians to Remain Union-Free

/PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL) today issued the following memo from Delta TechOps President Tony Charaf to the more than 6,700 aircraft maintenance technicians and related colleagues of the new Delta. The memo responds to the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association's (AMFA) filing with the National Mediation Board (NMB) yesterday to terminate its certification. Today the NMB accepted the union's request.

"Yesterday the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association (AMFA) filed with the National Mediation Board (NMB) to resolve representation issues among our Technician and related employees. Specifically, AMFA requested that the NMB terminate AMFA's certification to represent the Mechanics and Related craft or class at Northwest. This morning the NMB accepted AMFA's request and has revoked the union's certification.

This marks another significant merger milestone for Delta and its TechOps team. Resolving union representation issues has been on the minds of the men and women in Technical Operations in recent months and the NMB's swift ruling allows us to start aligning pay, benefits and work rules and implementing the already agreed on combined seniority list.

We have committed to a transition plan, which will be available on the TechOps portal later today. Let me share a few important details about how we will align pay, benefits and work rules:

-- Pre-merger Northwest technicians will come up to the Delta pay scales
and applicable license, skill and line premiums, effective with the
next pay period.
-- Union dues will be eliminated effective immediately.
-- Pre-merger Northwest technicians will be eligible for Delta's profit
sharing and Shared Rewards programs in 2009.
-- The transition to Delta's benefits programs -- including medical,
retirement, time off and disability -- will occur starting in January
2010.


As you know, the TechOps Seniority Integration Committee and AMFA partnered together to establish a fair and equitable seniority list. A subcommittee is now in the process of reviewing seniority disputes. A final list will be published soon. Our new AMT colleagues from Northwest can begin bidding on jobs as soon as Sunday, March 1. Additional communications about this process will be communicated to all TechOps employees tomorrow.

This is fantastic news for Delta and the new TechOps team. As I've said many times in the past, our flexible workforce has always been an advantage as we grow our global customer base. And now we have even more Airbus capabilities to offer our customers.

Thank you for staying focused on maintaining safe, reliable airplanes for Delta and our customers worldwide."

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