Twinkies Still Alive: Hostess, Union Agree to Talk

Twinkies won't die that easily after all. Hostess Brands Inc. and its second largest union will go into mediation to try and resolve their differences, meaning the company won't go out of business just yet. The news came today after Hostess moved to liquidate and sell off its assets in bankruptcy court citing a crippling strike last week. The bankruptcy judge hearing the case said today that the parties haven't gone through the critical step of mediation and asked the lawyer for the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union, which has been on strike since Nov. 9, to ask if the union would agree to participate.

The judge noted that the bakery union, which represents about 30% of Hostess workers, went on strike after rejecting the company's latest contract offer, even though it never filed an objection to it. "Many people, myself included, have serious questions as to the logic behind this strike," said Judge Robert Drain, who heard the case in the US Bankruptcy Court in the Southern District of New York in White Plains, NY. "Not to have gone through that step leaves a huge question mark in this case." Hostess and the union agreed to mediation talks, which are expected to begin the process tomorrow. (More Hostess stories.)