United Continental Holdings, Inc. has announced in a press release that it has reached with International Brotherhood of Teamsters to put a proposed joint collective bargaining agreement.
The proposed collective bargaining agreement is just awaiting ratification.
Bret Hart, the acting CEO of United, said in the press release that investing in their people is the key to the success of the company.
"Our customers care most about taking off and landing on time, and doing so safely, and the unsurpassed efforts of our professional technicians and related employees help make this possible every day," he said.
He adds in the press release that he is encouraged to have reached this part of the agreement with "such an important part of our workforce."
The proposed agreement will bring together under one contract the airline's more than 8,600 technicians and related employees.
The Northern Californian adds that mechanics of United Airlines and Continental Airlines would finally have contracts if the agreement is ratified.
The mechanics have been working interchangeably on the two airlines' aircraft without a contract for a long time despite being a member of the International Brotherhood.
The Northern Californian adds that the mechanics are just one of the two important labor groups that are working at United without an accord.
The company's flight attendants, numbering at 21,000, have also been attempting to reach a labor accord on a new contract with United for three years.
The company said in the press release that it is engaged with the Association of Flight Attendants in a mediated negotiation.
They are working on negotiating a contract with the airlines' flight attendants.
The ratification of the agreement would be a huge step for the company's efforts to fix its problematic relations with its labor force, according to the Northern Californian.
United said in the press release that it has a collective bargaining agreement that covers the majority of its represented employees.
This would include the pilots, dispatchers, fleet service, passenger service, reservations and storekeeper workgroups.
The airline said in the press release that it's also in talks with Air Line Pilots Association to consider an extension of their current collective agreement.
