United, Striking Pilots Meet

For the first time since formal talks broke off, negotiators for United Airlines and its 5,000 striking pilots met today with a federal mediator over the four-day walkout against the nation’s largest airline.

Helen Witt, head of the National Mediation Board, and board negotiator Ralph Colliander met behind closed doors with representatives of the airline and the pilots, who walked out over a company demand for a two-tiered pay plan that would have paid newly hired pilots less than their colleagues.