Flight attendants at Northwest Airlines Corp. are now one step closer to a strike, after announcing Friday that negotiations are at an impasse. The union requested that the National Mediation Board declare the impasse, putting their potential strike onto a second track after a federal judge blocked the first attempt. If the board agrees, it could start a 30-day clock ticking toward a strike. The Northwest flight attendants' union threatened random, unannounced walkouts after Northwest imposed pay cuts and work rule changes earlier this year. A federal judge blocked the walkouts, saying flight attendants first need to run through the mediation process required by the Railway Labor Act?a decision the union has said it will appeal.
