The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) District 142 today announced it reached a tentative interim collective bargaining agreement with Continental Airlines on behalf of the carrier’s 9,500 Flight Attendants.

“This 26-month tentative interim agreement addresses merger-related issues, increases compensation and enhances job security provisions,” said the IAM Flight Attendant Negotiating Committee in an announcement to the membership. “We have negotiated immediate benefits for the membership and important protections that will safeguard Flight Attendants through the operational integration with United.”

The question about which union represents the combined flight attendant group at a post-merger United Airlines will be resolved separately from the issue of which collective bargaining agreement survives the merger.

A collective bargaining agreement is not owned by a union – it belongs to the union members. If a group of airline employees decide to change union representation, the new union will inherit the contract negotiated by the prior union and be bound by its terms until it can negotiate new terms to bring both pre-merger groups under the same collective bargaining agreement.