To avoid problems over the Christmas and New Year holidays, United pilots who choose an open flight between December 30 and January 3 have been offered three and a half times their regular salary.
Over the previous two weeks, American airlines have canceled over 10,000 flights owing to severe weather and a spike in the number of sick calls from employees after testing positive for COVID-19. On New Year’s Eve, United canceled approximately 200 flights.
The United Airlines Pilots’ Association wrote in a letter:
“The impact on the operation is clear, and United has experienced a correspondingly large number of cancellations over the past week.”
Several other airlines, including American, JetBlue, Southwest, and Spirit, are also paying extra compensation to their staff, in addition to the Chicago-based carrier. Spirit Airlines’ cabin crew association said in a statement:
“All flight attendants, regardless of how you have obtained your pairing, will be receiving 200% pay for any pairing that touches December 28 through January 4.”
