A shortage of pilots amid a labor dispute has forced Alaska Airlines to cancel hundreds of flights since last Friday.
Pickets went up Friday at airports in Seattle and elsewhere on the airline’s West Coast route system. Alaska reported it canceled 9% of its service on Friday, about 120 flights, and 7% on Saturday, which affected about 12,000 travelers that day.
Flight cancellations were down to 6% on Sunday and about 3% on Monday.
“We apologize for the inconvenience and frustration we have caused because so many travel plans have been disrupted,” the airline said in a statement Monday.
As of Monday, the airline had canceled just one flight into Wrangell — the northbound jet last Friday morning — though several other flights through Southeast and Anchorage were taken off the schedule due to a lack of pilots.
The pilots set up picket lines as contract negotiations had reached an impasse. Contract talks started in 2019, with a one-year pause during the worst of the pandemic travel slowdown March 2020 to March 2021.
The Air Lines Pilots Association, which represents Alaska’s 3,100 pilots, has not called a strike, though fewer pilots than expected reported for work or signed on to take extra flights.
The shortage has “created operational challenges,” the airline said.
Nearly 100 pickets were at the Anchorage airport on Friday, according to news reports.
The labor dispute comes as air travel rebounds to pre-pandemic levels and demand is surging as many Americans head off on spring break or for long-delayed vacations. Frustrated travelers on Friday vented on social media about botched vacation plans and reported they endured up to a 10-hour wait to speak with an airline representative about rescheduling flights. Many said they couldn’t fly out for a day or two.
Alaska Airlines said it filed for federal mediation in the contract talks in October 2021. The next mediation session is scheduled for later this month.
The union said Alaska Airlines did not adequately prepare for a strong return to air travel after the pandemic and didn’t take the necessary steps to retain or attract pilots as demand bounced back.
Contract issues that still need to be resolved include job security, work rules and quality-of-life provisions for flexibility and scheduling, the union said in a statement, adding that the current contract falls well behind those at comparable airlines in several key sections.
“Alaska Airlines is having staffing issues. They may not want to say that, but they’re having staffing issues,” said Steve Van Metre, an Alaska Airlines captain on the picket line at Los Angeles International Airport on Friday. “We’ve had several pilots leave for other airlines because of the quality-of-life issues at this company.”
Alaska Airlines said Friday it values its pilots and respects their right to picket, but it also needs to negotiate a deal that allows the airline to maintain growth and profitability. Alaska Airlines is working to recover $2.3 billion in losses from the COVID-19 pandemic, it said in a statement.
The airline said it offers competitive salaries for its pilots. For example, an Alaska Airlines captain’s average salary is currently $341,000 per year, the airline said.
The company has said it is looking to add 300 pilots to its crew before the end of the year.
After a pandemic slump, the airline squeezed out a $14 million profit from $6.2 billion in revenue during the final fiscal quarter of 2021. Alaska plans to boost its aircraft fleet by 25% within the next five years — adding 100 aircraft to its expanding operations.
Jenny Wetzel, vice president of labor relations for Alaska Airlines, said in a statement Friday that “a new pilot contract remains a top priority for Alaska.”
Reader Comments(0)