American Air averts strike threat with flight attendant pact

American Airlines Group Inc. and the union for its flight attendants agreed on a tentative contract after US labor mediators pressed for a deal, likely averting the threat of a strike during the summer travel season.

The pact addresses union concerns on compensation, retroactive pay and work rules, the Association of Professional Flight Attendants said Friday in a message to members. Terms of the agreement were not immediately released. It must be approved by the APFA board of directors and executive committee before a membership vote takes place.

“If approved, this agreement will put billions of additional dollars into compensation and work rules for flight attendants,” union President Julie Hedrick said. The union represents 28,000 American workers.

The carrier said in a statement that the contract “will provide immediate financial and quality-of-life improvements for American’s flight attendants.”

The deal eases concerns that had been growing over a potential walkout during a summer travel season expected to set records for passenger numbers. The National Mediation Board, which had been overseeing talks for more than a year, pushed both sides in recent months to avoid a stalemate that could have moved flight attendants a step closer to a strike.

President Joe Biden praised the sides for reaching an agreement, along with officials overseeing the talks, saying in a statement that it “averts a strike that would have been devastating for the industry and consumers.”

If the pending agreement is rejected, negotiations would resume, opening the door for a potential strike later in the year. The union already had been preparing for a possible walkout, issuing an instructional handbook to members and opening a command center.

Lengthy Negotiations

The airline and union began talks in January 2019 before meetings were suspended by the pandemic, and resumed in August 2021. 

American’s flight attendants haven’t received a raise since 2019, and first-year workers make $27,000 a year before taxes, the union has said. The talks had stalled in part over work rules and total compensation, even though American Chief Executive Officer Robert Isom had pledged to match agreements reached at rival airlines.

Southwest Airlines Co. flight attendants approved a new $6.3 billion labor contract on April 24, two days after Delta Air Lines Inc. boosted pay 5% for non-union employees with the job, setting compensation levels that APFA sought to at least match. 

Southwest’s four-year agreement will provide an initial 22.3% pay raise, followed by three annual increases of 3%, and workers will split a pool of at least $364 million for bonuses based on time worked during years the contract was negotiated.

Flight attendants at United Airlines Holdings Inc. are also in negotiations for a new contract. The union representing Alaska Air Group Inc.’s flight attendants announced a tentative agreement on June 21.