Pilots to get bonus for perfect attendance
Bloomberg News, Boston Globe, 8/6/2007
WASHINGTON -- Northwest Airlines Corp. pilots, whose absenteeism caused the fifth-largest US carrier to cancel thousands of flights, has approved a contract that pays them overtime and a $1,000 bonus for perfect attendance through Sept. 3.
The Airline Pilots Association on Saturday ratified an agreement that will give its members overtime pay of 50 percent for flying more than 80 hours a month as of Aug. 1, as well as the attendance incentive of 15 percent of earnings up to as much as $1,000, the company said.
The contract "will help Northwest Airlines return to its historical status as one of industry's most reliable airlines," said chief executive Doug Steenland.
The airline, which schedules about 1,400 departures daily, canceled flights after pilots missed shifts during June and July. Northwest hasn't decided whether it will reinstate connections it decided to stop, such as those from US airports to Brussels and Germany.
"The schedule is set for a certain period going forward in anticipation of staffing," said Jim Herlihy, a spokesman for Northwest. "The schedule will be part of a review of staffing."
The Eagan, Minn.-based carrier's 4,900 pilots have been flying extra hours since a concessionary contract was negotiated last year, when Northwest was under bankruptcy protection.
Their monthly limit rose to 90 flight hours, from 80 hours.
Northwest said last week that it will trim maximum flying hours for pilots on domestic routes to 86 in August, from 88 to 90 hours in June. The airline also is cutting this month's US capacity by 4 percent and plans to hire as many as 350 pilots.
The carrier, which posted a 53 percent jump in second-quarter profit, to $273 million, after cutting labor spending and adjusting for gains from its May bankruptcy exit, said the agreement is "economically neutral."
Flight disruptions reduced revenue by $25 million during the quarter. Northwest canceled 12 percent of its service the last week of June, which it blamed in part on pilot absenteeism.