Source: Reuters

(Reuters) - Flight attendants with Continental Airlines Inc said they will not participate in contract talks with their peers at United Airlines, according to a report in Bloomberg.

United flight attendants had said in an exchange of letters they would have more leverage if they worked together, according to Bloomberg.

Representatives for Continental and for Association of Flight Attendants could not be immediately reached for comment.

UAL Corp and Continental merged last week to form the world's largest carrier, called United Airlines. The airline is a unit of United Continental Holding Inc.

United will continue to operate as two separate carriers until it receives a single operating certificate, expected within 18 months. The new combined carrier has some 87,000 employees.