![]() "We are confident that the parties will reach an agreement that is fair and equitable, as we always have in past negotiations."ĭelta's pilot union said the contract negotiations have dragged on for too long. "ALPA's stated purpose for the vote is simply to gain leverage in our pilot contract negotiations," a company spokesperson said. The carrier said a "significant progress" has been made in the contract negotiations and only a few issues have been left to resolve. passenger carrier was at Spirit Airlines (SAVE.N) in 2010.ĭelta said its pilots are not on strike and the vote will not affect its operation. This lengthy and complex process makes it difficult for airline workers to strike. If either side declines, both parties enter a 30-day "cooling off" period, after which pilots and management can engage in self-help - a strike by the union or a lockout by management. The board must first decide that additional mediation efforts would not be productive and offer the parties an opportunity to arbitrate. law, Delta pilots cannot walk off the job until the National Mediation Board grants them permission. The Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA), which represents nearly 15,000 pilots at the Atlanta-based carrier, said 99% of those who cast their ballots backed strike-authorization. Unless its pilots return to their normal work habits, flight cancellations are likely to become even more frequent during the busy summer travel season.Oct 31 (Reuters) - Pilots at Delta Air Lines (DAL.N) have voted to authorize a strike if negotiators cannot reach agreement on a new employment contract, their union said on Monday. Spirit desperately needs the temporary restraining order to be effective - and it needs to win a preliminary injunction in the hearing scheduled for next week. ![]() So while the company's offer may not be a great deal for pilots, the pilot union's current contract proposal seems to be a non-starter. Spirit's adjusted pre-tax profit last year was $461 million, so raises of this magnitude would eviscerate its profitability. Meanwhile, the union has demanded much larger raises that would cost Spirit Airlines $1.9 billion over five years (according to the company's estimates). However, in return, Spirit has demanded work rule changes in order to improve pilot productivity. That would get its pilots much closer to their peers, especially because Spirit's brisk expansion enables its pilots to move up the ranks much faster than they would at other carriers. On the other hand, Spirit's most recent contract proposal offered the pilots an immediate raise of about 30%. The difference is even greater at lower seniority levels - and most Spirit pilots are nowhere near the top of the wage scale due to the company's rapid growth in recent years. By contrast, the top-of-scale wage at Spirit is $185 per hour. ![]() For example, pilots at fellow ultra-low-cost carrier Allegiant Travel agreed to a new contract last year with a top-of-scale wage of $216 per hour. There's no doubt that Spirit Airlines' pilots are underpaid right now. The court issued a strongly worded temporary restraining order requiring the union to make sure its members do not engage in any concerted slowdown or other labor action pending a hearing next Monday. On Tuesday, a federal judge sided with Spirit Airlines. And while the union has emailed pilots twice to remind them that they are prohibited by law from taking collective action, it has over the past year encouraged pilots to do "whatever it takes" to pressure Spirit into offering a better contract. By Monday, the dispute between the company and its pilots had escalated so much that Spirit Airlines filed a lawsuit against its pilot union, seeking a court order forcing its pilots to return to the "status quo."Spirit's court filings include several posts from an online pilot forum in which Spirit pilots proposed intimidation tactics against fellow pilots who volunteered to pick up open flights.
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