Pilots at American Airlines have moved one step closer to a potential strike and will soon start voting on whether they support an almost unprecedented walkout in protest at protracted contract negotiations.
The decision to open a strike ballot was made just a day after AA chief executive Robert Isom made a direct appeal to pilots with an offer of a bumper 40 percent pay hike, along with a slew of lifestyle improvements that was meant to woo pilots.
During a meeting of the Allied Pilots Association (APA) on Wednesday, however, the union’s board of directors unanimously voted in favor of starting an electronic strike authorization vote, according to internal documents obtained by aviation insider xJonNYC on Twitter.
The strike vote is set to stretch on for the next two months and will not conclude until April 30, with results set to be published on May 1. Even before the results are published, the union will establish a dedicated ‘strike center’ at its headquarters in preparation for a possible walkout.
Isom wrote to pilots on Tuesday with details of a four-year deal that would see average pilot rates increase by 40 per cent. A top-rated widebody aircraft Captain could earn $590,000 a year – an increase of $170,000 more than what they earn at the moment.
“A deal like this would be a game changer for our pilots. I would be worth more than $7 billion in incremental compensation, benefits and quality of life improvements over the terms of the four-year agreement,” Isom explained.
The offer was made in response to a game-changing contract that pilots recently approved at rival Delta Air Lines, and Isom claims his deal would result in AA pilots joining their Delta peers as the “industry’s leaders in pay”.
The timing of the strike authorization vote isn’t ideal for Isom’s proposed pay offer, but it is hardly surprising.
In fact, a strike vote is generally considered a fairly standard negotiation tactic and similar votes were held by pilots at Alaska Airlines and Delta Air Lines before deals were struck.
A contract negotiation is not just about MONEY! Isom did not reveal other terms of the contract. Scheduling, sick time, hotels, location of accommodations, other benefits – including employee costs – base rules/assignments, and other details must be considered by the pilot group. This article reflects that the pilot group was not presented with the whole picture. I’m guessing that APA saw the WHOLE PICTURE, and said, no, let’s start a vote to strike. They are looking for something MORE than money. That “something” has not been included in this article. APA would not have chosen to vote for a strike, a day after Isom appears to promise a GREAT contract if, in fact, a GREA contract had een offered the day before. Life is about more than money. Come on Isom, what did you leave out of your missive to the pilot group? The pilot group needs to listen to their union (costs them a lot of money out of each pay), rather than a CEO who clearly has the company’s/investors/executives interests as priorities over what the pilot group wants. Don’t listen to half the story!!