Southwest Airlines and AirTran Airways pilots overwhelmingly approved a plan to combine the seniority lists of the two carriers, with five out of six pilots voting in favor, their unions said Monday.
The approval clears the way for Southwest to begin bringing AirTran pilots and airplanes into Southwest Airlines, a process expected to begin in 2012 and be completed by the end of 2014.
The vote ratifies an agreement made two months ago by negotiators with the Southwest Airlines Pilots’ Association and the AirTran master executive council of the Air Line Pilots Association.
“I am extremely proud of our negotiators’ efforts to preserve and enhance the career value of every Southwest Airlines pilot and proud of our membership for demonstrating leadership by voting in favor of this negotiated list,” SWAPA president Steve Chase said.
“This agreement cements the bond between our pilot groups, and helps clear the path to the complete integration of the two airlines,” said Linden Hillman, MEC chairman at AirTran.
Because seniority helps determine rank, schedules, vacations and pay, a decision on how two labor groups are combined is among the most difficult issues in airline mergers.
ALPA and SWAPA negotiators had worked out an agreement July 16, but the ALPA master executive council voted a month later not to send it to its members for a vote. The two sides worked out a revised plan in September, and members began voting on it a month ago.
ALPA leaders told AirTran pilots in late September that Southwest officials had raised the possibility that if pilots didn’t agree to a seniority integration plan, Southwest might keep AirTran as a separate brand. The implication was that option would not be a good one for AirTran pilots.
According to the unions, 83.56 percent of Southwest pilots voting were in favor of the seniority plan, while 83.58 percent of AirTran pilots voting cast ballots for the plan. The unions said 95.1 percent of Southwest pilots voted, as did 93.99 percent of AirTran’s pilots.
Southwest has more than 6,000 pilots, compared to 1,700 at AirTran.
“While SWAPA’s preference will always be for fleet growth and not growth through acquisition, we trust that our company leaders will continue to take us in a profitable direction,” SWAPA president Chase said.
Southwest chairman and chief executive officer Gary Kelly “has stated that in combining these airlines ‘one plus one should equal more than two,’ ” Chase said. “Now with the certainty of an integrated seniority list, we are all looking forward to the continued success and growth of Southwest Airlines.”
Southwest executive president and chief operating officer Mike Van de Ven called the vote “a significant milestone in the integration of our two great airlines.” Chuck Magill, Southwest’s vice president of flight operations, called the decision “the beginning of an exciting future for our pilots and our airline.”
Keep reading for Hillman’s message to AirTran pilots.
November 7, 2011
Fellow Pilots,
It is decided. The Seniority Integration Agreement has been approved. With an 83.58 percent vote of the ATN pilots and an 83.56 percent vote of the SWAPA pilots – both in favor of ratification – our collective hands have extended and accepted Southwest’s offer as to how the pilot groups will be merged. As such, the next few weeks will be busy as we start the process of combining flight operations. The momentum of this integration will accelerate in the coming months and before long our last pilot will have made the transition to Southwest Airlines. Once a phoenix rising, AirTran Airways will have flown its final flight.
Before we look to the future, however, we must take time to recognize the contributions that the ATN pilots have made to AirTran Airways. We helped build an airline from scratch, and then rebuilt it again and again. The AirTran of 2011 is distinctly different from its precursors in 1993 and even from itself in 2001.Through it all, we remained steadfast in our dedication to the success of the company and the professional execution of our duties. These traits, our core ideals, set the foundation for a high quality experience from a low-fare carrier. By exceeding the expectations of both our passengers and our most ardent opponents, AirTran, perpetually the underdog, succeeded in the face of intense competition.
Similarly, through most of its 40-year history, Southwest and its employees were also underdogs. They were fortunate, however, to have the visionary leadership of Herb Kelleher and Colleen Barrett, who encapsulated the “Southwest Way:” a Warrior Spirit, a Servant’s Heart and a Fun-LUVing attitude. They created a whole corporate department to foster and preserve this culture, while we had to adopt these principles organically. We did it in a vacuum, amongst ourselves, because we knew that our future as airline pilots was dependant on the success of a business over which we had little control. This is our identity – professionals in the face of adversity.
Even now, we have sacrificed to ensure the success of the company. But, by ratifying this agreement, we, along with SWAPA pilots, have taken ownership of our pilot integration and the future of Southwest Airlines. From Portland, Maine to Portland, Oregon, Southwest Airlines will extend a reach only imagined when it began flying its first Dallas to Houston and San Antonio legs in 1971. CEO Gary Kelly has also spoken of his desire to push even further: to Mexico, Canada, Alaska and Hawaii. The synergies unleashed by the merger of our two airlines will power this expansion with nearly eight thousand pilots at the helm. Together, with every other employee, we will benefit from our improved competitive position and the opportunities created by this growth.
So let’s look ahead; not through rose colored glasses, but with plain sight. Our future lies with Southwest Airlines. In order to facilitate a smooth transition, we must focus on building upon those common traits which unite us with our peers, and we must recognize that it is in our collective interest to work together to help our new company navigate through uncharted territory.
With that in mind, I commend you on your unyielding professionalism. Together, we will write the next chapter of our careers.
In unity,
Linden Hillman, Chairman