After more than three years of
negotiations, Southwest Airlines has reached a tentative agreement with its
pilot union.
The airline has reportedly
agreed to a new deal with its pilots, making
Southwest the last of the Big Four carriers to reach a contract agreement with
its pilots.
Terms were not disclosed, but
American, Delta, and United pilots received an average 40 percent increase in
their pay over five years.
Southwest officials called it a
"key milestone," but the proposed contract still has to be ratified
by the 11,000 members of the union representing Southwest's pilots.
There were threats of strikes during
the course of the lengthy negotiations, but the President of the United States
has the authority to step in and prevent walkouts.
At one
point, the pilots were so frustrated they opened a strike center to show their
seriousness and twice asked federal mediators for permission to file a 30-day
notice of a strike.
Now, what about those Southwest
flight attendants?
Southwest flight attendants are also
threatening to strike. However, the situation there seems more dire, as union
representatives said they have been negotiating with the airline for more than
five years. The two sides recently rejected a tentative deal and said they had
not received a raise during that time.
Just days ago, Southwest's flight
attendants rejected
a contract proposal.
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