United Airlines flight attendants are set for pay rises of up to 45%
The United branch of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA reached a tentative deal with the airline on May 23. The first details of the deal were published on Tuesday.
It states that cabin crew members would receive pay increases up to 45.6% over the contract's five-year timeframe.
The immediate raise would be as much as 27.8%, meaning a rise in hourly pay for those in their first year from $28.88 to $36.92. By the end of the contract, the starting pay would be $42.06 an hour.
The proposed increases for longer-serving flight attendants would be between 26% to almost 28%.
It means pay for the longest-serving staff would jump from $67.11 an hour to $84.78. By the end of the contract, the hourly rate would be $96.58.
Flight attendants are typically only paid for the time of the flight, but the tentative agreement also includes half-pay during boarding. Delta Air Lines was the first in the US to introduce this back in 2022.
There is also a one-off payment for retroactive pay. The union said it was an "industry-leading" formula worth $595 million, which compensates for the lack of a cost-of-living raise for United flight attendants since 2020.
Contract negotiations have dragged on while competitors have ratified their own agreements.
On May 13, about a dozen flight attendants gatecrashed a press event unveiling United's new Polaris business class to highlight the lack of a deal.
American Airlines flight attendants ratified a deal last September that gave them an immediate pay increase of up to 20.5%. Five months earlier, Southwest Airlines flight attendants won a 22.3% pay increase.
Delta flight attendants, who aren't unionized, have received annual pay increases. The latest put the starting wage at $36.92 — the same as United's tentative contract.
The United AFA is set to hold a road show, both virtually and at airports nationwide, before voting opens on July 7.
Voting closes on July 29. If the contract is approved by union members, it will take effect the following day.
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