Polar Air Cargo crew go on strike

Polar Air Cargo crew go on strike    Crewmembers of Polar Air Cargo Friday went on strike following the breakdown of negotiations between Polar’s parent company Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings (AAWW) and the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) over a new collective bargaining agreement.
   AAWW said its final offer called for no changes to the current work rules, pay rules and benefits, and provided for an immediate 10.5 percent across-the-board pay raise. “Our goal was to put our Polar crewmembers at parity with our Atlas crewmembers pending merger of the two carriers,” said Jeffrey H. Erickson, president and chief executive officer of AAWW. “ALPA’s demands were simply not justified in any respect, particularly given the current competitive and fuel environment in which Polar competes.”
   AAWW and the ALPA had been in negotiations for an amended agreement since 2003. The two parties were released from negotiations last month by the National Mediation Board into a mandated 30-day cooling off period, which ended midnight Thursday, after which the decision to strike was made.
   AAWW said it has returned three aircraft on dry lease to Polar back to Atlas Air. It has also placed two Polar aircraft for sale or lease, and is in the process of placing the remaining seven Polar aircraft in other uses, including dry leases.