Northwest Airlines is hiring its first new flight attendants since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, a step that reflects a healthier outlook at the bankrupt carrier.
The airline wants to sign on 250 flight attendants "due to attrition and very modest operational growth," said Roman Blahoski, a spokesman for Northwest. Training will begin in January.
The hiring — combined with recent recalls of hundreds of laid-off employees — comes as the airline is posting improved financial results.
Eagan-based Northwest reported a third-quarter net loss of $1.18 billion but, excluding bankruptcy reorganization charges, it would have posted a profit of $252 million. The airline plans to emerge from bankruptcy by mid-2007.
Northwest began advertising for flight attendants last weekend, Blahoski said.
Some of the new hires would fly out of Northwest's hub in Detroit but it's not certain where others would be based, he said.
"This is one of those double-edged sword things," said Ricky Thornton, a spokesman for the flight attendants union at Northwest. "When you look at the big picture and the global picture, Northwest is growing and hiring. Unfortunately on the other side, they're growing and hiring based on the money from their employees."
About 9,000 Northwest flight attendants are working under an imposed contract, which cut their pay, benefits and other compensation by 40 percent this summer, after they rejected two tentative agreements reached between Northwest and the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA. Those cuts save Northwest $195 million a year, which is part of an overall $1.4 billion in annual labor cost savings. Talks resume in early December to reach a negotiated settlement. The union is appealing a judge's order barring a strike.
Roughly 830 furloughed flight attendants returned to Northwest after the airline recalled 1,131 in September, Thornton said. In addition, the airline plans to offer recalls to its 700 furloughed pilots this year and next year.
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