Hostess, Bakers' Union Agree To Negotiate To Save 18,000 Jobs

Hostess Brands Inc. agreed in court on Monday to enter private mediation with its lenders and leaders of a striking union to try to avert the liquidation of the maker of Twinkies snack cakes and Wonder Bread.

Hostess, its lenders and the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union, agreed to mediation at the urging of Bankruptcy Judge Robert Drain of the Southern District of New York, who preferred it to the more expensive public hearing regarding the company's liquidation.