FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Washington, D.C., August 24, 2012 – The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) today welcomed the decision by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in New York to deny a $5.3 million bonus plan for eight senior executives at Hawker Beechcraft.
In a ruling that concurred with the IAM objection to the plan, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Stuart Bernstein said Hawker failed to prove that the plan was an incentive plan — which is allowed under bankruptcy law — and not simply an executive retention plan — which is not permitted.
“This is an important win for stakeholders at Hawker Beechcraft, including employees and the Wichita community, all of whom want to see Hawker succeed,” said IAM Aerospace Coordinator Ron Eldridge. “We remain opposed, however, to any recovery or restructuring that favors executives at the expense of the men and women who built this company.”
The full text of the ruling can be viewed here (PDF).
The IAM represents more than 3,000 active and laid off workers at Hawker Beechcraft and is one of the largest industrial trade unions in North America, representing nearly 100,000 aerospace workers among 700,000 active and retired members in dozens of industries. For more information about the IAM, visit www.goiam.org.
