Washington – Federal data show that total employment by large U.S. network airlines grew for the first time in nearly six years.
The seven network airlines combined had 0.3 percent more workers in May 2007 than a year earlier, based on the number of full-time equivalent employees.
The data released by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics showed United’s full-time equivalent employee count declined to about 51,800 in May, from about 53,600 a year earlier. Frontier Airlines’ full-time equivalent employee count grew to about 4,900 from about 4,400 a year earlier.
Overall, airline employment – including network carriers as well as low-cost carriers and regional carriers – was up 2 percent in May over a year earlier.
Additional business news briefs:
DENVER
Frontier seeking Calif.-Mexico flights
Frontier Airlines has applied for federal permission to start seasonal once-a-week flights from San Diego to Mazatlan, Mexico, with Airbus A319 planes from Dec. 15-July 5 annually.
It also applied for permission to start seasonal San Jose, Calif.-Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, flights and Sacramento, Calif.- Puerto Vallarta flights, operated primarily by Frontier regional carrier Republic Airlines starting Dec. 15.
HOUSTON
Plains Exploration buys Pogo Production
Plains Exploration & Production Co., a Houston-based oil company with operations in the Piceance Basin of western Colorado, agreed to buy Pogo Producing Co. for $3.6 billion.
Pogo stockholders will receive 0.68201 share of Plains and $24.88 in cash for each of their shares, the Houston-based buyer said Tuesday. That values Pogo at $59.79 a share, an 18 percent premium on Monday’s closing price.
The Pogo acquisition, the biggest ever for Plains, will add producing wells and exploration properties in Texas and includes assets in the Madden Field in Wyoming.
DETROIT
Chrysler scraps new, heavy luxury car
Chrysler said Tuesday it has pulled the plug on planned production of what would have been its largest and heaviest luxury car because of expected increases in U.S. fuel-efficiency standards.
Officials said the decision to scrap a production version of the Imperial – shown as a concept at the 2006 North American International Auto Show in Detroit – was made during the past two weeks.
VIENNA, Va.
200,000 phoneless after Net carrier shuts
The abrupt shutdown of Internet phone carrier SunRocket left more than 200,000 customers scrambling for alternate service Tuesday and raised questions about the viability of other Internet phone providers.
SunRocket, like other companies that provide phone service only over broadband, attracted customers with cheap plans and innovative features.
But traditional phone and cable companies also lowered prices and started bundling their services.
NEW YORK
Charges reinstated in bribery allegations
A U.S. judge reinstated charges accusing Frederic Bourke, co-founder of luxury-bag maker Dooney & Bourke, and former American International Group Inc. director David Pinkerton of bribing officials in Azerbaijan.
U.S. District Judge Shira Scheindlin on Monday reversed part of her June 21 ruling and said Bourke and Pinkerton must stand trial for helping Czech expatriate Viktor Kozeny bribe officials in the Central Asian republic in a failed bid to take over its oil company.
The case centers on U.S. allegations that Kozeny, while living in Colorado, paid millions of dollars in bribes to Azeri officials in his attempt to seize control of the State Oil Co. of the Azerbaijan Republic in 1998.
DALLAS
Whole Foods probes CEO’s online postings
Whole Foods Market Inc. said Tuesday that federal regulators and its own board of directors are investigating online postings by the chief executive, who apologized for his actions.
Chairman and CEO John Mackey, using the name “Rahodeb,” boasted about Whole Foods and attacked rival Wild Oats Markets Inc., based in Boulder, on financial websites.
“I sincerely apologize to all Whole Foods Market stakeholders for my error in judgment in anonymously participating on online financial message boards,” Mackey said Tuesday in a statement.
Whole Foods announced in February it would buy Wild Oats for about $565 million, but federal antitrust regulators won an injunction temporarily blocking the deal.
WASHINGTON
Feds join states on subprime watch
The Federal Reserve will team with state regulators to police subprime-mortgage lenders and brokers, bridging a gap in oversight that helped fuel record defaults on homes bought by borrowers with weak credit.
The Fed’s announcement, a day before Chairman Ben Bernanke addresses the House Financial Services Committee, may blunt claims the central bank has done too little to protect consumers against deceptive lending practices.
WASHINGTON
Commerce chief heads Vietnam trade mission
Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez said Tuesday he will lead a trade mission to Vietnam later this year, hoping to boost export opportunities for American companies.
The trade mission, which will occur toward the end of the year, will enable U.S. companies to develop business and government contacts to gain access to the Vietnamese market.
