AFA Claim: “Delta CEO made more money than executives at other airlines in 2021, while flight attendants made less than their peers”
Reality: This is false. Delta flight attendants’ total compensation leads the industry.
Delta’s performance, powered by our people, has positioned our airline for a strong recovery – and that’s exactly why all Delta people are paid the best.
Sharing Our Success
Delta’s compensation philosophy of pay for performance and sharing in our financial success is consistent across all levels and workgroups. AFA alleges that our special profit sharing payment for 2021 was a “technicality” and that Delta flight attendants need an AFA contract to ensure a “spirit of sharing”. But that couldn’t be further from the truth. We have historically shared more of our profit with you than others in the industry:
Delta has paid more than $9.2 billion in profit sharing since 2010, including more than $6 billion in profit sharing in the five years leading up to the pandemic.
We maintained this momentum by awarding all eligible employees a special profit-sharing payment in February 2022 totaling more than $100 million. We were able to do that and recognize our employees’ extraordinary efforts through the pandemic because we were the only major U.S. airline to achieve profitability in the second half of 2021.
Delta’s Shared Rewards program remained intact throughout the pandemic while other airlines suspended theirs, allowing us to grant our flight attendant's an extra $1,575 between April 2020 and December 2021.
We’re proud to say that we’re currently on track to deliver a meaningful profit share this year. But what is AFA’s track record when it comes to negotiating for profit sharing at other airlines? No AFA contract provides the level of profit sharing we have at Delta. In fact, at United, AFA’s contract provides less profit sharing to flight attendants than what Delta has and even what United pilots get.
Industry-Leading Compensation
Delta also outperforms other airlines in total compensation for flight attendants. As shared in our 2021 OAL Comparison, our flight pay rates are higher than American and United at every step of the scale, from Day 1 to the top: they are 2% higher than American at every step and between 4-7% higher than United depending on the step. At United, the impact of the quarterly pay incentive on the hourly flight pay rate is 2-4% (lower than Delta, depending on the step) at 80 hours per month.
And, our flight attendants benefit from our “pay for performance” philosophy, just like every other Delta employee -- all the way up to Ed. It is that performance that allowed us to provide a 4% pay increase in May (the first in the industry since 2020), to introduce our industry-first boarding premium, and implement many other improvements this year.
AFA attempts to compare Delta’s median staff salary to other airlines’, but that number is driven by the demographics of employees across all Delta workgroups, and can’t be compared to other airlines whose demographics and metrics may be different than ours. Our 2021 median is what it is because we have many more new employees than in the past from our efforts in scaling up staffing and building back our operation as quickly as possible. In the last year, we have welcomed 18,000 new employees across our airline. This year alone, we’ve welcomed 2,200+ new flight attendants in 16 graduating classes.
AFA’s Track Record
AFA claims that with a contract, you’ll see all kinds of improvements “locked in” at Delta. But the truth is AFA has never locked in anything – at any airline – that comes close to what you have today. Delta flight attendants also know our highest priority has always been and continues to be taking care of you in good times and bad, which is why during the pandemic, while AFA-represented flight attendants at other airlines faced furloughs, we kept every Delta flight attendant who wanted to stay on board.
We have a long track record of putting you first, sharing the most, and working on timely improvements that make a difference. Our culture embraces you speaking your mind and enables leaders to act, and the proof is there for all to see. We’re not playing games: at Delta, you don’t have to gamble your future with the AFA. Let’s continue to keep climbing, together.
Related AFA vs. Reality Articles
MAY 12, 2022
“Delta added new boarding pay because of the AFA’s organizing effort”
AFA claimed credit for our decision, but they have not negotiated boarding pay into the contracts of any airline they represent.
MAY 12, 2022
“AFA can negotiate a full contract for a workgroup within a year”
We are not aware of cases where AFA has done this for a group as big as Delta’s. Negotiations for much smaller groups have taken years.
MAY 12, 2022
“AFA ensures every flight attendant has a voice”
In a recent case with the NMB, AFA advocated to exclude over 80% of Avelo Airlines’ flight attendants from their union election.
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Stay in the know.
Text DELTA to +1 205 846 8096 for updates*
*By texting the keyword above, you are agreeing to receive periodic SMS text messages from Delta Air Lines regarding One Future. One Delta. Standard messaging and data rates may apply. You may unsubscribe any time by texting “STOP” and the keyword above to +1 205 846 8096. Full Terms.