Mesa’s tentative pact would mean pilot raises
Mesa Airlines, which operates United Express flights in Houston, is one step closer to resolving its tense labor issues.
The Phoenix-based airline recently reached a tentative agreement with the pilots union. Its members, including about 350 based in Houston, will vote on the contract between June 26 and July 12.
“We still have a lot of work ahead of us, but it’s nice to be near the end game,” said Capt. Andy Hughes, master executive council chairman for the Mesa pilot group of the Air Line Pilots Association, International.
Hughes said he is “fairly confident” the pilots will accept the contract that boosts retirement benefits, vacation accrual and pay, among other things.
First officers working in their first year will immediately see a 62 percent increase in wages, plus gradual increases over the next four years. More senior first officers will see wages boosted 10 to 37 percent immediately, with gradual increases to follow.
Houston captains will see an immediate 10 to 12 percent raise, with an additional 21 percent increase compared with today’s rate during the life of the contract.
“I think our guys did a good job,” Hughes said, “and I think that they achieved most of our pilots’ goals.”
The tentative agreement comes three months after Mesa pilots requested me-
diation services from the National Mediation Board. Contract negotiations have been ongoing for more than six years.
Mesa flight attendants have also been stalled in their contract negotiations. In March, they voted to authorize a strike after five years of negotiations and two years in mediation. Flight attendants are represented by the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA.
Heather Stevenson, union president for Mesa, hopes the pilots’ tentative agreement clears the path for flight attendants to reach their own agreement. They return to negotiations on Tuesday.
“We’re all in this together,” Stevenson said. “I’m happy that they got an agreement, and I’m hoping that we will be soon to follow.”
Jonathan Ornstein, Mesa’s chairman and CEO, did not comment Monday. But previously, he cited recent legislation as a reason for not yet meeting the flight attendants’ demands. This legislation boosted the flying time pilots are required to have before they can be hired in commercial aviation. That put a plug in the hiring pipeline, and Mesa’s excess money has gone to recruiting new pilots.
“Now that they have put something together with the pilots, the unknown is removed,” Stevenson said. “So I’m hoping that’s a good thing for us.”