United Airlines Beats Class Suit Claiming Broken Buyout Promises

Former United Airlines Inc. employees who say the carrier mishandled recent voluntary buyout programs saw their proposed class action fall flat when a federal judge dismissed their claims under both ERISA and state law.

The lawsuit, filed in 2021 by former flight attendant Micheal (Susie) Hoffman and others, accuses United of reneging on an alleged 2017 promise to retiring workers that they’d be eligible for any additional benefits available under subsequent buyout programs established within three years of their retirements.

United broke this promise when it failed to pay employees who retired under a 2020 buyout window the “significantly richer ...