September 7, 2004
US Airways Pilots Reject Wage and Benefit Cuts
Leaders of the US Airways pilots’ union rejected a bid to have
pilots vote on a proposal by the airline for $295 million in wage and
benefit cuts, the union said early today, the New York
Times reported. Support by the pilots for concessions is critical
for the struggling airline to win agreement from other unions on wage
and benefit cuts it says are needed to avoid a second bankruptcy. US
Airways has said unless it gets a total of $800 million in concessions
from its 28,000 employees by the end of September, it is likely to seek
bankruptcy protection, the newspaper reported.
Creditors to Object to SPMH/Kare Deal in Bankruptcy Court
Creditors will be squaring off against Santa Paula, Calif.-based
Santa Paula Memorial Hospital’s (SPMH) bankruptcy attorney Tuesday
in a hearing where the judge will be asked to approve the creation of a
business plan that could lead to the reopening of the shuttered
hospital, Santa Paula News reported. The hospital is seeking to hire a
new management company whose only physician partner has experienced
state medical board woes. Although Kare Healthcare Inc. has been working
with SPMH directors on an agreement that could lead to a business plan
to reopen the hospital, creditors last week filed a court objection
questioning Kare’s qualifications.
Acclaim Bankruptcy Highlights Digital Entertainment Woes
The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) said earlier this year
that while gaming industry revenue was up, the portion of it derived
from violent and mature-rated games was down, TechNewsWorld
reported. Industry observers agree that the health of the U.S. computer
game industry is highly dependent upon big hit titles, a lack of which
helped to harm Acclaim.
Clarifying Prima Facie Standard, Court Reinstates Smoker’s
Asbestos Claim
Reversing a Philadelphia court’s dismissal of an asbestos claim
brought by a longtime smoker, a Pennsylvania Superior Court panel has
underscored that an asbestos plaintiff may establish a prima facie case
by presenting evidence of exposure and breathlessness that impairs daily
activities, the Legal Intelligencer reported. Plaintiffs
attorney Richard Myers says the opinion could help other asbestos cases
by plaintiffs who smoked at some point in their lifetimes survive
summary judgment. Read the full article at
href='http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1094073204035'>http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1094073204035.
Alitalia Tells Unions of Plan to Lay Off 5,000 Workers
Alitalia told its unions yesterday that it plans to lay off about
5,000 of its 21,000 employees in a move to avoid filing for bankruptcy
protection, the New York Times reported. In addition to the
dismissals, the airline’s CEO, Giancarlo Cimoli, said Alitalia
would further pare its payroll by not renewing the contracts of another
1,000 seasonal workers. The job cuts are part of a general restructuring
presented to union leaders on Monday that includes a plan to split
Alitalia’s flight operations and ground services into separate
units.
Cost of Bankruptcy in the U.K.
As student debt in the United Kingdom has jumped by 50 percent to
more than £12,000 on average in the past year, many have been
tempted to declare themselves bankrupt, Creditman.biz reported. But
experts warn that new bankruptcy rules mean that rather than wiping the
slate clean in a year, they could be tied up by the Insolvency Service
for up to 15 years. Changes in the law introduced in April give the
Insolvency Service the power to extend a person’s bankruptcy if
they have spent recklessly or irresponsibly.