Pinnacle Airlines pilots are amongst the lowest paid jet airline pilots in the nation. Please review the charts below to see how Pinnacle Airlines pilot pay compares to the industry average.

It is important to note that the pay rates are hourly and Pinnacle Airlines pilots are only paid for the period of time between when an aircraft leaves the gate at its point of departure, and arrives at the gate at its destination. Pinnacle Airlines pilots are not paid for mandatory pre or post-flight duties, the many hours spent waiting at airports between flights, local transportation and countless other daily tasks. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulations state that an airline pilot may fly no more than one thousand hours per year. As a result, the hourly rates multiplied by one thousand generally represent the maximum yearly earning potential of a Pinnacle Airlines pilot. A Pinnacle pilot is only guaranteed nine hundred hours of pay per year. While Pinnacle Airlines pilots are paid based on flight time, total duty time grossly exceeds the flight time that pilots are paid for. Many pilots are on duty for up to sixteen hours per day yet earn approximately $20,000 per year.

Background:

Pinnacle Airlines pilots represented by the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) have engaged in over one hundred informal, formal and mediated negotiating sessions with Pinnacle Airlines management dating back to July 2004.

The current Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) or labor contract became amendable on April 30th, 2005. Informal meetings were conducted in July 2004 in an attempt to reach a new contract prior to the amendable date. These negotiations were not successful and were suspended in August 2004.

In accordance with Section 6 of the Railway Labor Act, Pinnacle pilots represented by ALPA advised Pinnacle Airlines management in December 2004 of their intent to engage in Section 6 negotiations to achieve a new contract.

In January 2005, Pinnacle Airlines management responded to the notice and formal Section 6 negotiations were initiated. Throughout 2005, negotiations continued and Tentative Agreements (TA) were reached on twelve non-economic sections of the contract.

On September 14, 2005, Northwest Airlines filed for bankruptcy. Pinnacle airlines management attempted to use Northwest Airlines status to pressure ALPA by implying that failure to quickly reach a new pilots contract would result in negative consequences for Pinnacle Airlines including possible bankruptcy.

In December 2005, Pinnacle Airline management presented to ALPA a comprehensive proposal that was labeled as its “last and best offer”. In January 2006, ALPA rejected the concessionary and below industry-average contract proposal set forth by Pinnacle management.

In May 2006, management once again presented its December 2005 “last and best offer” claiming that this was a “new” proposal. Both parties met for negotiations with a private mediator in July 2006 at ALPA headquarters in Herndon, Virginia. The negotiations were once again unsuccessful because Pinnacle Airlines management stated that they were unwilling to change their December 2005 “last and best offer”.

In August 2006, both Pinnacle Airlines CEO Mr. Philip Trenary and CFO Mr. Peter Hunt sent letters to the homes of all Pinnacle Airlines pilots and other employee groups where they attempted to circumvent Section 2 of the Railway Labor Act by attempting to bypass the Air Line Pilots Association and put managements “last and best offer” directly to the pilots.

Although ALPA’s attempts to engage in further negotiations with Pinnacle Airlines management were met with refusal, in August 2006 Pinnacle management filed a request for mediation with the National Mediation Board (NMB) falsely alleging “dilatory tactics” by ALPA.

Negotiations resumed in October 2006 with a mediator appointed by the NMB.

On January 2007, Pinnacle Airlines purchased regional airline Colgan Air. In clear violation of the existing Collective Bargaining Agreement between Pinnacle Airlines and its pilots, Pinnacle Airlines management refused to engage in discussions with ALPA regarding the protection of the Pinnacle Airlines pilots “scope” or job security.

Mediated negotiation sessions continued throughout 2007. Although TAs were reached on some sections, significant sections remain open.

Current Status:

Mediated negotiations between Pinnacle Airlines management and the pilots represented by the Air Line Pilots Association continue as mandated by the Railway Labor Act.

As a result of multiple attempts by management to violate the RLA and circumvent the Air Line Pilots Association, in October 2007 ALPA filed suit in United States District Court against Pinnacle Airlines management asserting violation of the Railway Labor Act.

In December 2007, the pilots of Pinnacle Airlines overwhelmingly voted to authorize a legal strike once released by the NMB. The 99.39% majority voting to authorize a strike is the highest strike authorization vote in ALPA history.

In January 2008, ALPA petitioned the NMB to issue a proffer of arbitration citing Pinnacle management’s failure to make any meaningful improvements to its “best and last offer” made in December 2005.

Should the NMB decide to issue a proffer of arbitration, binding arbitration would be offered to both parties. Should either party reject the proffer, parties may be released into a thirty-day cooling off period as a prelude to self-help (a strike).

On January 8, 2008, in an unprecedented move, Pinnacle Airlines management filed a complaint in United States District Court against the Air Line Pilots Association alleging “bad faith bargaining”. ALPA considers the complaint to be totally without merit.

In a significant victory for ALPA, in March 2008, an independent arbitrator ruled that Pinnacle Airlines violated the Collective Bargaining Agreement with its pilots when it refused to negotiate job protection with the Pinnacle Airlines pilots related to the acquisition of Colgan Air. The arbitrator has ruled that Pinnacle Airlines management must engage in discussions with ALPA regarding job protection for the Pinnacle pilots.

In late April 2008, ALPA extended a comprehensive proposal to Pinnacle management in an attempt to finally achieve a fair contract for Pinnacle Airlines pilots.

While we remain hopeful that a contract can be negotiated, the pilots of Pinnacle Airlines stand united and are firmly committed to achieving a contract that fairly compensates and recognizes the role that the pilots play towards the success of Pinnacle Airlines. Once released by the National Mediation Board, the pilots are fully prepared to engage in a legal strike.

99.39% of pilots cannot be wrong.