Robert A. Siegel

Siegel, an O’Melveny partner, is a leading airline labor lawyer. He advises virtually all the major U.S. airlines on their union issues and has been involved in nearly every major airline merger in the past three decades, including Alaska Airlines Inc.’s $2.6 billion acquisition of Virgin America in 2016.

In that deal, Siegel obtained a positive result for client Alaska Air Group Inc., the airline’s parent, in a 2017 arbitration that established the first joint pilot collective bargaining agreement following the merger. Although the union argued that Alaska’s pilot pay should match that of pilots at American Airlines Inc., Delta Air Lines Inc. and United Airlines Inc., Siegel argued that the union’s proposal would have a significant negative impact on Alaska’s business model. The arbitration panel adopted a pay rate slightly higher than the company’s proposal but substantially below that of the union.

“We have a broad-based practice in aviation, including antitrust lawyers and those who work in airport finance,” Siegel said.

For clients Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings Inc. and subsidiary Southern Air Inc., Siegel won summary judgment over the arbitration of collective bargaining agreements. After Atlas Air acquired Southern in 2016, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, representing the pilots, refused to negotiate a joint collective bargaining agreement. Siegel sued to compel the union to arbitrate and took the unusual step of moving for summary judgment on the argument that the court could rule on the undisputed material facts submitted by the airlines in witness declarations and exhibits. U.S. District Judge Nelson S. Roman in New York ruled for Siegel’s clients. Atlas Air Inc. v. International Brotherhood of Teamsters, 7:17-cv-00903 (S.D. N.Y., filed Feb. 7, 2017).

“The union didn’t want to arbitrate,” Siegel said. “They contended this was not the kind of merger covered by the contract. The judge said that’s for the arbitrator to decide.”

Siegel’s proud of another win he notched for Atlas Air last year, again in a struggle with the union. He obtained a preliminary injunction prohibiting the International Brotherhood of Teamsters and its member pilots from engaging in any slowdown activities designed to give the union greater leverage in ongoing collective bargaining negotiations. The slowdown and service interruptions caused significant harm to the airline and its customers, Siegel said.

“We said pilot slowdowns were not permitted under the Railway Labor Act. The judge [U.S. District Judge Randolph D. Moss of Washington, D.C.] agreed.” Atlas Air Inc. v. International Brotherhood of Teamsters, 1:17-cv-01953 (D. D.C., filed Sept. 25, 2017).

“The slowdown issue is important for the airline industry, because it does happen,” Siegel said. “This case involved an important principle.”

— John Roemer