CHICAGO (AP) – United Airlines said Friday that it has a tentative deal to combine more than 8,600 maintenance workers from United and the former Continental Airlines under one contract, a step toward improving the carrier’s rocky labor relations.
The deal with the Teamsters would boost top pay immediately by 25 percent to an industry-leading $46.15 per hour, and result in 33 percent higher pay by the end of the six-year contract, said Don Wright, United’s vice president of maintenance operations. It would also pay employees $100,000 to take early retirement and create an $80 million pool for signing bonuses, he said.
The Teamsters represented mechanics at both airlines before the 2010 merger that created United Continental Holdings Inc.
The company has joint contracts covering pilots and other employees but not flight attendants. Oscar Munoz, who became CEO Sept. 8, and Brett Hart, who was named acting CEO on Monday after Munoz suffered a heart attack, had both said it was a priority to finish the combined labor deals with mechanics and flight attendants.
United shares rose $2.54, or 4.5 percent, to $58.59 in afternoon trading.