P.M. BRIEFING : Eastern Pilots Agree to Interim 25% Pay Cut Through Mediator

Eastern Airlines today announced an interim contract agreement with its pilots union that calls for a 25% wage cut and said the pact does not call for rehiring those who walked out in March of last year.

Eastern also warned that the pact was temporary and would have to be renegotiated by July 1 because it allows for only about half the cost reductions the debt-plagued carrier requires to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization.

Eastern insisted the National Mediation Board would have to continue efforts to reach a permanent agreement to further cut costs. Spokesmen for the pilots union could not be reached for comment.

“If expedited mediation is not successful in leading to such an arrangement, Eastern . . . will have to promptly seek bankruptcy court permission to achieve full cost reductions on a long-term basis,” the carrier said in its release.

The pilots and the airline have been meeting since September under the auspices of the mediation board.

Eastern’s approximately 850 pilots are being paid at the pre-strike wage rate of about $72,000 a year and under the agreement would take a 25% cut.

Eastern spokesman Robin Matell said the cuts would not affect approximately 950 replacement pilots, who earn $27,500 a year. Their pay would not be raised to the same contract levels as pre-strike pilots.