Airline Pilot Contract Talks Ongoing as Holiday Travel Season Looms

A pilots union representing roughly 14,000 pilots with American Airlines says ongoing contract negotiations are at a “frustrating” point as talks near three years.

“It’s not only to improve our pilots’ professional and financial lives, it’s actually to inject reliability into American Airlines,” Capt. Dennis Tajer said.

Capt. Tajer has been with American Airlines as a pilot for more than 30 years. Tajer also serves as a spokesperson for the Allied Pilots Association, based in Fort Worth. Early negotiations over pilot contracts began in January 2019, he says. Nearly four years later, Tajer said the push for more control over pilot scheduling remains a key issue.

“When mother nature hits, flights get canceled. They should be canceled for safety. When American management fails is in the recovery after a weather event. That’s the time when pilots like myself can come out there and help, but we need to have the flexibility in our schedule,” he explained. “Right now, American management has locked down our trip trading system. Whatever you get, you got to fly. You have no ability to move around to help them out or even accommodate your personal life.”

In a statement to NBC 5 last month, a spokesperson for American Airlines said the air carrier had put forward an “industry-leading proposal” in regard to contracts. Tajer said Thursday, the proposal had only “minor adjustments”.

In response to the ongoing talks, an American Airlines spokesperson wrote in an email: “We remain committed to reaching an agreement with the APA that will benefit our pilots and our operation and continue to meet regularly to reach a deal.”

Multiple major airlines are in the process of contract negotiations. Kyle Arnold, an aviator reporter and senior business writer for Dallas Morning News, said pay is also an issue but scheduling is paramount.

“The big deal, really is…scheduling. Pilots themselves want more control over their schedules. The reserve system, essentially when you’re on-call as a pilot…and they don’t like so many people being on call, they say, during these big meltdown cancelation events,” Arnold said. “United has put out contracts, Alaska has put out contracts, so everyone is waiting to see who gets what out of those deals.”

In September, Southwest Airlines pilots asked the federal government to step in and help in settling stalled contract negotiations with the Dallas-based carrier after more than two years of talks. The Southwest Airlines Pilots Association sought federal intervention from the National Mediation Board to resolve the most contentious sections of negotiations with the company including pay, benefits, retirement, and scheduling.

“Southwest is eager to continue moving negotiations forward with the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association, so we can reward our pilots and continue to attract great people,” a statement Thursday from Southwest Airlines read. “As the negotiation process nears its third year, including a 13-month-long pause due to the COVID-19 pandemic, mediation will be beneficial to guide and facilitate our discussions. We look forward with working with the National Mediation Board and SWAPA.”.

Though planned walkouts are unlikely, as they are prohibited by federal labor laws, Arnold said overall employee morale may be at risk. He said this could pose a potential issue, as airlines prepare for a busy holiday travel season.

“What we do start to see is when these contracts get really contentious is, workers lose motivation. They’re upset, they don’t want to necessarily pick up extra shifts,” he said. “When you have just a few people not picking up extra shifts, it trickles down. It slows down the whole operation. We saw that with mechanics a couple of years ago.”

As for American Airlines’ ongoing negotiations, Tajer said the union is not weakening its demands. They are eager to work with the company, he said.

“We’re not going to stop fighting for this on behalf of our passengers, and what we’ve earned over the years. We’ve got to turn this around,” he said.