L.A. airport service workers end day-old strike

By Steve Gorman

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Some 1,500 workers at Los Angeles International Airport halted a day-old strike and returned to work on Friday after Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa brokered a labor truce with companies providing ground services for major airlines.

The walkout ended as the world's fifth busiest passenger airport -- and third busiest in the United States -- headed into the bustling Labor Day holiday weekend, during which an estimated 825,000 travelers are expected to pass through LAX.

The airline service companies and the Service Employees International Union Local 1877 agreed to resume contract negotiations next week under a three-week "cooling-off" period called for by Villaraigosa.

They also agreed that striking workers would return to work without retaliation from management. A union spokesman said workers were back on the job by 8:30 a.m. local time.

"I am urging the workers and contractors, with the support of the airlines, to come to a fair agreement that ensures quality services and keeps passengers moving safely and efficiently," Villaraigosa said in a statement.

The union has been negotiating since early July with a group of companies contracted to provide various ground services for several major carriers, primarily American, United and Southwest Airlines.

Three contracts at issue would cover 2,500 skycaps, baggage handlers, wheelchair attendants, security personnel and janitors. About 1,500 workers went on strike on Thursday.

The union is seeking higher wages, improved health-care coverage and more training for its members, who the union says earn an average of $19,000 a year. The union says the cost of its demands would add less than 25 cents to the price of an average airline ticket.

Industry officials have declined to comment on the contract dispute, which comes as airlines are being squeezed by rising fuel costs being passed on to consumers in the form of higher ticket prices and surcharges.

(Editing by Peter Cooney)