The Transport Workers Union of America said Thursday that it has asked its 13 local unions that represent fleet and ground service workers at American Airlines to schedule strike authorization votes this month as a result of what it calls an impasse with the airline. Each local is to report the results of the balloting to the international union no later than July 30.

About 11,000 of the union's fleet and ground service workers handle baggage, clean aircraft, de-ice and fuel planes, and move freight at U.S. airports where Fort Worth-based American has operations. The announcement follows the union's statement issued Monday that there had been a "complete breakdown" in contract talks with American, that it no longer had a tentative agreement with the airline regarding those workers and that no ballots would be submitted to members for a contract ratification vote.

The union also said there are unresolved issues "related to contracting out work."

In a prepared statement, American Airlines spokeswoman Missy Latham noted that while the Transport Workers "made the decision not to give its members the opportunity to vote on this contract as it originally agreed to, only the National Mediation Board -- not the union -- can determine if talks have reached an impasse."

Latham said the mediation board has not declared an impasse, and thus "no job action is imminent." She said mediators have not scheduled further talks.

The union said that while negotiations between the fleet services group and the company are at an impasse, voting on tentative labor agreements is moving forward for its mechanics, technicians and workers who handle parts at American.

Under the federal Railway Labor Act, airline unions cannot strike until federal mediators declare an impasse and a 30-day cooling-off period expires. The union asked the mediation board to declare an impasse in March, but the board told the parties to continue talks.

"If our members authorize a strike, we believe that we could be granted release by the National Mediation Board as early as September," said Robert Gless, deputy director of the union's Air Transport Division, in a statement Thursday.

American is also girding for a potential strike by flight attendants. In late May, the airline said it had written managers in the Dallas-Fort Worth area seeking about 4,000 volunteers to complete flight attendant training in case the Association of Professional Flight Attendants goes on strike. The association represents 18,000 flight attendants at American. The flight attendants union also must ask the mediation board to declare an impasse in contract talks and go through the 30-day cooling-off period before it can strike.