American Air pilots, flight attendants to get pay hike

Bloomberg

American Airlines Group Inc. reversed its opposition to mid-contract pay raises as Chief Executive Officer Doug Parker moved to soothe strained labor relations at the world’s largest carrier.
Aviators will receive an increase of about 8 percent as soon as next month with flight attendants getting a 5 percent bump, the world’s largest carrier said in a message to employees.
The changes will make compensation equal to the highest pay rates at its primary rivals, American said.
The raises ended Parker’s refusal to adjust pay before labor contracts expired, which employees pushed for after significant gains last year by their counterparts at Delta Air Lines Inc. and United Continental Holdings Inc. The CEO has struggled to improve a long history of strained management-union relations at American since assuming control of the airline after its 2013 merger with US Airways.
“Today’s news is not about buying trust because we all know trust cannot be purchased,” Parker and President Robert Isom said in the letter. “Today’s news is about doing the right thing, and doing so not because we are contractually required to or because we are locked in a contentious contractual battle.”
Higher Costs
The raises, approved by American’s board, will boost the airline’s labor costs $230 million this year and $350 million in each of 2018 and 2019, the carrier said. The increases must be approved by members of the Allied Pilots Association and the Association of Professional Flight Attendants.
“This is good news and an important step to a culture change and rebuilding the trust at American Airlines,” said Dennis Tajer, a spokesman for the pilots’ union. “We look forward to that continuing.”
Bob Ross, president of the flight attendants’ union, said the pay raises were a “big win” for his group’s members.
“We’re going to keep speaking out about how to improve our jobs and improve conditions in our industry,” he said in a statement. “We expect management to keep listening – because that’s the right way to run an airline.”
American began considering the pay change last fall, after new labor agreements at Delta and United were adopted sooner than expected, said Elise Eberwein, American’s executive vice president for people and communications. That left American workers’ compensation lagging until their existing contracts could be amended in 2019 and 2020.