Atlas Air Worldwide and pilots complete contract talks after five years
13 / 09 / 2021
Atlas Air Worldwide and pilots at subsidiary airlines Southern Air and Atlas Air have completed a new joint collective bargaining agreement (JCBA) after more than five years of negotiations.
The airline and International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) union have been in talks over merging Atlas Air and Southern Air pilots onto a single contract since the latter was acquired by Atlas in 2016.
The agreement was eventually pushed through with the intervention of an arbitrator.
“The five-year JCBA is one of the last major steps in completing Atlas Air’s merger with Southern Air, which it acquired in 2016,” Atlas said.
Atlas said that pilots at both airlines will receive higher pay and enhanced benefits as part of the overall package.
Pay increases will be effective in October, with the remaining terms and conditions to be implemented in the coming months.
John Dietrich, president and chief executive, Atlas Air Worldwide, said: “Our company has long prepared for this investment in our pilots and has factored these new terms and conditions into customer contract negotiations.
“We continue to see strong demand for our aircraft and services as we expand and extend customer agreements. We are well-positioned to leverage the diversity of our business model to capitalise on very favorable global airfreight market conditions.”
