After More Than 4 Years, United Airlines Pilots Get 40% Raise

It’s a good day for United Airlines pilots. Represented by the Air Line Pilots Association, the union reached a preliminary deal with United Management. After around four years of negotiations that included picketing, pilots are about to get a 40% raise.

According to the union, the deal is worth around $10 billion. Part of the deal is improvement in “quality of work-life, compensation, job security, work rules, retirement, benefits.”

Enhanced Bargaining Power

Given the current pilot shortage, the group enjoyed having enhanced bargaining power. And with a higher demand in travel despite inflation, it was a perfect scenario for the union to get the upper hand.

United, Delta, and American Airlines are expected to hire around 8,000 additional pilots this year to keep up with the current demand.  Despite these plans, hiring 8,000 pilots may not be enough. According to analysts at Jefferies, the United States is short of approximately 10,000 pilots. This gap between the demand and supply of pilots is expected to last until 2027.

Union Groups Demanding Airlines

United pilots are not the only ones demanding improved benefits and wages. In March, Delta pilots received around a 34% increase in pay. Then, there’s the American Airlines pilots that are also set to vote on a contract.

Under the United deal, the cumulative pay increases range from 34.5% to 40.2% depending on the type of aircraft that the pilot files.

In a statement by the airline, “We promised our world-class pilots the industry-leading contract they deserve, and we’re pleased to have reached an agreement with ALPA on it.” The statement added that “The four-year agreement, once ratified, will deliver a meaningful pay raise and quality of life improvements for our pilots while putting the airline on track to achieve the incredible potential of our United Next strategy.”

Once everything is finalized, the agreement will have to be ratified by 16,000 member pilots.