United Airlines will outsource more than 600 jobs at 12 airports around the country, but bring in-house almost 400 other positions, the company said Monday.
United spokesman Christen David called it a "difficult decision, but we need to ensure that our costs are competitive."
Instead, the 635 positions will go to vendors who not only pay their workers considerably less than United pays for doing the same position - which, in this instance, includes baggage handlers, ticket agents and gate agents - but often do not pay benefits.
International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers spokesman James Carlson told the Associated Press the outsourcing was a "race to the bottom. How can you compete with vendors paying $12 an hour?" when United's top pay for the work is about $24 an hour, he said.
United lost more than $600 million in the first quarter of this year and has been in a cost-cutting mode. The carrier will be outsourcing jobs at airports in Albuquerque, New Mexico; Buffalo, New York; Charleston, South Carolina; Charlotte, North Carolina; Columbus, Ohio; Des Moines, Iowa; Detroit; El Paso, Texas; Sioux Falls, South Dakota; Wichita, Kansas; Pensacola, Florida; and Salt Lake City.
With the exception of Charlotte, Detroit and Salt Lake City, these are mostly smaller airports that service United subsidiary United Express.
However, United will be adding back almost 400 positions that had been previously outsourced at airports in Denver, Honolulu, Phoenix, and Washington-Dulles.
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