American Airlines, mechanics spar in court over who's responsible for delayed and canceled flights

A leader of the union representing American Airlines mechanics said a lawsuit accusing its members of slowing down work "came as a shock" during testimony in federal court Monday. A Transport Workers Union VP based at DFW International, and other union leaders tried to debunk accusations that they told members to slow down work and turn down overtime to pressure American Airlines as it negotiates a new combined contract after 4 years of talks. "No one from American Airlines reached out to us before this about a slowdown," he said. American Airlines lawyers and witnesses contend statistics since February show that a backlog of maintenance work could be pinned on illegal union collusion. The airline estimates as many as 88,000 customers have had flights delayed or canceled because of the alleged slowdowns. <br/>