American and pilots settle issues after handshake by airline and union presidents

American Airlines and its pilots union have reached a pre-holiday tentative settlement agreement on 3 issues that had long divided them. The issues include duty rigs involving pilots who have not been getting paid for all the days they are away from home; seniority restoration for pilots who had not been credited for time they were on furlough – this particularly benefits former TWA pilots – and outstanding grievances regarding pilot scheduling. The settlements require approval from the APA board of directors. They came about after American president Robert Isom and APA president Dan Carey agreed to resolve the issues, during a Dec 1 meeting called to discuss the temporary breakdown in the carrier’s holiday pilot scheduling procedure. <br/>