Northwest Airlines flight attendants face key votes

MINNEAPOLIS — Northwest Airlines flight attendants might switch unions today, in the middle of their showdown with the bankrupt airline's management.

A judge ruled Wednesday that Northwest can impose a new contract July 17. The Professional Flight Attendants Association (PFAA) has said it reserves the right to strike if that happens.

But with flight attendants voting on a possible union switch, it wasn't clear which union would represent them to carry out a strike.

The flight attendants will wrap up two votes within an hour of each other today.

First they'll decide whether to switch to the Association of Flight Attendants (AFA). Then balloting ends on whether the PFAA will affiliate with the Transport Workers Union. A third outcome is possible, if unlikely. If fewer than half of flight attendants cast ballots, they'd be left without any union at all, under airline labor law.

The PFAA has been rocked by turmoil, with several high-level officers and negotiators resigning in the past year.

The discontent led the AFA to announce on Sept. 14 — the same day as Northwest's bankruptcy filing — that it would try to organize Northwest's 9,300 flight attendants.

As recently as three years ago, flight attendants voted to leave the Teamsters and form the independent PFAA.

A vote to switch to the AFA would put a new union in charge of negotiations that have reached their endgame.

The National Mediation Board is running that election, and its rules call for it to certify the winning union within one business day.

That would fall on Friday, the same day more talks are scheduled with Northwest and six days before Northwest will be free to impose its contract on flight attendants.

"We will begin immediately. We have spent a lot of time and resources on making sure this is a smooth transition," AFA spokeswoman Corey Caldwell said.

Whoever wins today's elections, it's not clear whether Northwest has any incentive to negotiate something different with flight attendants.

It has won permission to impose a contract rejected by 80 percent of flight attendants last month.

Northwest would have to wait for flight attendants to vote on a new tentative agreement. That took three months last time.