2024 Profit Sharing: Meanwhile at Delta and United …
On Feb. 14 – which Delta Air Lines calls “Profit Sharing Day” – the airline’s employees will receive a payout equal to an estimated 10% of their eligible earnings, representing an average of five weeks in additional pay. In their announcement regarding the payouts, the airline stated that “shared success is core to Delta’s values, and profit sharing is a key element of Delta’s commitment to industry-leading total compensation for industry-leading performance.” The profit-sharing payouts will total $1.4 billion.
As for United Airlines, that carrier will be paying out $713 million in profit sharing to employees. Both Delta and United proudly touted their profit-sharing payouts in their earnings press releases, thanking employees for their contributions to their collective success.
In sharp contrast, American Airlines will pay out a negligible 1.5% of each pilot’s 2024 earnings in profit sharing. That perennial bronze medal payout is based on the airline’s report of $1.37 billion in total income. Let that sink in: American's income is less than what Delta will be paying out in profit sharing. And, unsurprisingly, profit sharing did not even receive an honorable mention from our senior leadership in American’s earnings press release.
It is tempting to congratulate American management on the substantial 8.5% discount they received compared to Delta for the exact same professional services, but that cost advantage has done nothing to help this company close the revenue or profit gap with our peers. And while management has said it expects the newly inked credit card deal with Citi to drive additional revenue in the coming years, that does nothing to address the disparity we’ve experienced during the last decade.
We perform the same essential service for the same rates of pay as our peers at Delta and United, yet our total compensation trails theirs thanks to American’s lagging financial performance. That's unacceptable, and one way or the other, it needs to change.