A federal judge has grounded an airline pilots’ union’s efforts to dodge a class-action lawsuit by arguing the claims brought by the suit expired while the case was on appeal, and the class action over pay owed to pilot instructors will continue.
A dismissed suit by United Airlines pilot instructors, which alleged their union unfairly divided retroactive pay among different pilot categories, is flying again, courtesy of a Chicago federal appeals panel that ruled a lower court should not have grounded the suit, because the instructors plausibly argued the union gave them the short end of the stick.
A federal judge in Chicago has signed off on class action status for a lawsuit against the Air Line Pilots Association International, or ALPA, by management pilots for United Airlines, who complain they were not fairly compensated in a payout of $225 million in retroactive pay the association distributed on behalf of the airline.
