Delta Airlines 2011 Annual Report Download - page 15

Employee Matters
Railway Labor Act
Our relations with labor unions in the U.S. are governed by the Railway Labor Act. Under the Railway Labor Act, a labor union seeking to represent an
unrepresented craft or class of employees is required to file with the National Mediation Board (the “NMB”) an application alleging a representation dispute,
along with authorization cards signed by at least 35% of the employees in that craft or class. The NMB then investigates the dispute and, if it finds the labor
union has obtained a sufficient number of authorization cards, conducts an election to determine whether to certify the labor union as the collective bargaining
representative of that craft or class. A labor union will be certified as the representative of the employees in a craft or class if more than 50% of votes cast are
for that union. A certified labor union would commence negotiations toward a collective bargaining agreement with the employer.
Under the Railway Labor Act, a collective bargaining agreement between an airline and a labor union does not expire, but instead becomes amendable as
of a stated date. Either party may request that the NMB appoint a federal mediator to participate in the negotiations for a new or amended agreement. If no
agreement is reached in mediation, the NMB may determine, at any time, that an impasse exists and offer binding arbitration. If either party rejects binding
arbitration, a 30-day “cooling off” period begins. At the end of this 30-day period, the parties may engage in “self help,” unless the U.S. President appoints a
Presidential Emergency Board (“PEB”) to investigate and report on the dispute. The appointment of a PEB maintains the “status quo” for an additional 60
days. If the parties do not reach agreement during this period, the parties may then engage in “self help.” “Self help” includes, among other things, a strike by
the union or the imposition of proposed changes to the collective bargaining agreement by the airline. Congress and the President have the authority to prevent
“self help” by enacting legislation that, among other things, imposes a settlement on the parties.
Collective Bargaining
As of December 31, 2011, we had approximately 78,400 full-time equivalent employees. Approximately 16% of these employees were represented by
unions, including the following domestic employee groups.
Employee Group Approximate Number of Active Employees Represented Union Date on which Collective Bargaining Agreement Becomes
Amendable
Delta Pilots 10,850 ALPA December 31, 2012
Delta Flight Superintendents (Dispatchers) 340 PAFCA December 31, 2013
Comair Pilots 790 ALPA March 2, 2011
Comair Maintenance Employees 280 IAM December 31, 2010
Comair Flight Attendants 550 IBT December 31, 2010
All of our agreements with workgroups at our airline subsidiary, Comair, are currently amendable. Comair is in discussions with representatives of the
respective unions and we cannot predict the outcome of those discussions.
Labor unions periodically engage in organizing efforts to represent various groups of our employees, including at our airline subsidiary, that are not
represented for collective bargaining purposes.
Completion of Merger Integration
Integration of a number of the workgroups following our merger with Northwest Airlines (including pilots, aircraft maintenance technicians, dispatchers,
meteorologists, simulator technicians, and office and clerical staff) has been completed. Completion of the integration of other workgroups (including flight
attendants, airport employees and reservations employees) will be completed during 2012 following the final resolution of representation issues during the
latter part of 2011. The flight attendants, airport employees and reservations employees each rejected representation by unions.
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