United won approval for a new contract with flight attendants and reached an “agreement in principle” with mechanics, setting the stage for labour peace for the first time since the 2010 merger that created the airline. The Association of Flight Attendants voted 53% in favour of a five-year pact that raises top pay rates as much as 31%, according to a joint statement with the carrier Friday. United also reached a proposed deal with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters covering 9,000 technicians and related employees, which will be voted on once the language is finished. The results bolster CEO Oscar Munoz’s strategy of winning over a disgruntled workforce, even if it means accepting higher costs. United reached new agreements or extensions of existing ones with pilots, ground workers and dispatchers during the past year. “Upon ratification, this will be the first time in almost a decade that all United work groups will have labor contracts in place,” Munoz said in a joint statement with the Teamsters. “When I took this job last year, I promised to turn the page and write a new chapter in our approach to labor and management relations at United,” he said. Maximum pay for flight attendants with at least 13 years of experience will be set at $62 an hour, according to the contract ratified by the 25,000-member union. <br/>
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Lufthansa and pilots' union Vereinigung Cockpit have broken off talks over pay and early retirement terms after months of negotiations, they said on Saturday. While progress had been made on many points, both sides were unable to reach agreement on others, a Lufthansa spokesman said. Lufthansa has been in talks with the pilots union for four years in a long-running dispute that has seen more than a dozen strikes hit one of Europe's largest carriers. The airline is trying to cut costs at its main brand in Germany in order to better compete with low cost rivals in Europe and fast-growing long-haul carriers such as Emirates and Turkish Airlines. It has already agreed wide-ranging pay and pension deals with cabin crew and ground staff. Union representatives said in a letter to members seen by Reuters that it was willing to do its bit to make Lufthansa more competitive, but there was no point continuing the talks. Lufthansa said it still believes that an agreement is possible and will do its utmost to resume talks with VC.<br/>