Delta Air Lines and its pilots are opening negotiations for a new contract, and the union wants fast bargaining. They shared their opening proposal on Monday, with key priorities including scope provisions; pay rates including retirement, holiday and vacation days; better layover hotels; higher priority on personal travel as a non-rev; better commuting and deadheading travel and more schedule flexibility.
The current Delta pilot agreement took effect on March 2, 2023 and becomes amendable on December 31, 2026. At times labor contracts don’t get negotiated before they reach their planned end. In aviation, under the Railway Labor Act, these terms stay in effect until a new agreement is in place.
Starting now is a good thing. These agreements usually take a long time. That March 2023 agreement?
- Negotiations started April 5, 2019
- Delta went to federal mediation starting on January 6, 2020
- But bargaining was suspended in March 2020 due to the pandemic
- Talks resumed on January 18, 2022
- An agreement in principle was reached on December 2, 2022
- The deal was ratified on March 1, 2023.
Last time around, Delta pilots set the bar for the industry. That agreement delivered 34% pay raises over its life, costing $7.2 billion over four years. There were 18% raises in 2023, 5% on January 1, 2024, and 4% on January 1 of both 2025 and 2026.
The airline’s fortunes have improved dramatically since then, with over $18 billion of pretax income in the last four years. Pilots say if Delta is premium, then their pay should be too. They’re actually still better-paid than peers, though other airline deals have caught up on base wages.
- Delta set the market in 2023. But the current pay advantage comes from profit sharing, not base wages.
- At the top of the widebody scale, Delta, American, and United are basically tied: a 12-year Airbus A350, Boeing 777 or 787 captain make $465.13 an hour and first officers earn $317.73.
- However on smaller widebodies like the Airbus A330 or 767 next year’s 12-year seniority rates will be $404.92 for a captain and $276.56 for a first officer versus $417.07 for a captain and $284.86 for a first officer at both American and United. (Since Delta’s deal runs through 2026, other airline pilots get raises next year but Delta pilots need a new deal for that – something that the airline’s non-union workforce don’t have to wait for.)
- Delta 737 captains currently earn $388.27. Next year American will pay $402.01 and United will pay $399.92, while Southwest will be $401.04.
- Nonetheless, Delta earns the most profits and pays out the most profit sharing.
Delta pilots are looking to move fast and keep the agenda focused. Profits are high now, but conditions can deteriorate quickly with the economy and with higher oil prices. Things can move quickly when they aren’t interrupted by macro situations. In 2012, Delta and ALPA reached an agreement seven months before the contract’s amendable date.
Currently, scope and equipment are live issues. Delta ordered 30 Boeing 787-10s, on top of prior 737-10 MAX orders, and they are in a strong position to negotiate over pay for those. And with Delta projecting 506 retirements this year, and resuming pilot hiring, there’s a window where the union has leverage – which is somewhat limited by the President’s control of the National Mediation Board. Airline strikes are rarely permitted, and weren’t during the Biden administration, but become even less likely with the current one.
Delta pilots are re-opening negotiations from strength, but they know that strength has a limited window. Delta still has a premium brand and premium profits, while their current pay deal is no longer head and shoulders above peers. So the time to execute is now in case that situation deteriorates.
(HT: @AeroCrewNews)
“the current pay advantage comes from profit sharing, not base wages”
The writing is on the wall: We’re over-due for a downturn. And, this one will be because of bad leadership (no, not the company, necessarily, the country… yes, TDS, but also, for real, it’s Him, and he sucks fellas, like, bad for business).
Let’s think ahead: Inevitably, companies like Delta (and United, American, etc.) are gonna run to Congress, demand a taxpayer bailout (probably a grant, not a loan, as-in, free money, for nothing). We, the people, should help our companies, but there must be strings attached, like meaningful worker and consumer protections. Time for an EU-261-equivalent in the US.
checks retirement account*
Yeah 1990 the sky is falling. Every day you say the same thing.
Vote blue and get your down turn.
I don’t understand why some people constantly cheer for bad times.
I agree with 1990. How early can you start drinking and it not be considered a problem?
Deltas a highly profitable company they can absorb it.
As for 1990 your a fool and know it. No thanks to anything EU. In regards to a downturn only a moron would think that. This weeks and last weeks economic indicators are on fire. Other than the price of gas which will be temporary the sky is not falling.
In regards to a downturn in the Airline industry be a long time waiting for that. Boomers are fueling insane growth..they are retired and spending the coins. Take a look at United for instance half the plane is Business Class with it being packed.
There are real life downturns and numbers downturns. I believe the former but not latter has begun. When the latter happens, however, the results will not be pretty esp if the USD loses hegemonic status in the interim.
May need to crack open a window… lots of copium in here. “EVERYTHING IS FINE!” Thank you for your attention to this matter. Praise be to…
For TD when he joins the post inevitably: pilots asking for higher non-rev priority – do you think the Delta FAs are about to learn another lesson for why they want a union?
For the record I think it’s highly unlikely they’d get that because it literally hurts every other work group.
@Retard – Whelp, your handle is back in full force today, and you’ve truly earned it. That sure didn’t last long. Never have I so badly wished that there was a blocking function for a blog. (For those who don’t yet know, I’m referring to 1990.)
It is not surprising that DALPA doesn’t want to drag things out but they also recognize that there are likely to be much smaller economic gains and much more opportunity for QOL and job protection improvements while the company wants greater efficiency.
All DL widebodies pay the same except for the 763 which is supposed to be retired within four years and maybe less.
Andy,
pilots and FAs all want better commute policies but that doesn’t mean they will get them. and DL pilots have long felt that they don’t get as many “nice things” as pilots at other airlines because DL will not let them have a benefit that DL will not give to its other employees.
and alot of pilots do not want to trade something that benefits all pilots – like higher pay – for something like commuting which only benefits a subset.
Notably, DL is one of the few airlines that does not have a Florida pilot base despite DL’s size in FL which forces alot of commuting than would otherwise be the case.
Tim –
Good points about pilots negotiating benefits that affect all pilots versus benefits that only affect a subset. However, every contract at every airline eventually has a work group use negotiating capital to benefit a subset. It’s impossible to avoid.
Examples?
“Affect everyone” issues: pay, scope clauses, retirement/pension plans, medical plans, vacation, grievance/discipline procedures, travel benefits, sick pay, training, Long Term Disability plans
“Affect a subset” issues: reserve rules (only +/- 20% of pilots on reserve), layover improvements (not important to pilots flying day trips), augmented rest rules (i.e. flights with more than 2 pilots for the flight – irrelevant to narrow body/domestic pilots), commuting protections (not needed for pilots living in base), crew meals (some refuse to eat them and bring their own food), reassignment/schedule modification rules (affects domestic flying far more than international widebody flying), furlough protections (more significant to the most recently hired pilots), etc.
But this is the point of a “union” – the majority is supposed to use their strength and leverage to ensure the needs of their minority members are also met. Or, as it is often said: “When ONE of us has a problem, EVERYONE of us has a problem.”
The guy named Mike Hunt is making fun of someone else’s handle? Now, that’s funny!
The word “Premium” and “Delta” were mentioned numerous times. Cue Timmy D.
Pilot Paul,
yes, unions try to balance the largest benefit for the largest group of people. and the result of what they focus on is not always democratic, esp. since the company also has priorities.
DL pilots will remain well paid but I suspect they will not have some things that some want because DL won’t do those things for other work groups.
and the real impact of DL pilots negotiating early could be for DL to indicate to the industry that they are not going to hike pay near as much as they did in their covid era contract – which also will help restore confidence that most airlines can get through this high oil environment which will not go away anytime soon.
The pilots will always get what they want. The licensed airframe and powerplant mechanics will not. The mechanics are not the airline premium when it comes to total compensation. They are also not union.
Pilots are just accelerating the day of single person cockpits.
“Be careful what you wish for ” …. Ship has just about sailed or that aircraft has just about departed as far as generous contract enhancements …. lol
You all keep forgetting each airline has “SNAP UP” clauses in their contracts… The moment one takes a pay hike, we go to…. So, keep on truckin! I love my $400/h!
I hope the DL pilots will lobby for an improved call out/move up system. From what I have read their new system is not working.
The pilots want better non-rev benefits than all the other employees
Pilots are wanting to get pampered more and more. The fact that they get a FC seat while deadheading is ridiculous. That time is part of their duty day and are getting paid…just as if they were in the flight deck.
@Mike Hunt — Sorry for the delay. As you know, sometimes I’m slow… (By the way, @RetardisintheWhiteHouse is not me, and that was a good one.) What’s up with these appeals to block/ban others… not very ‘let the free market decide’ of you… Bah!