Negotiations Have Gone On Four Years; Previous TA Axed

Aero-News learned this week pilots for cargo hauler Kalitta Air will vote on a tentative agreement by mail ballot over the course of the next month. The proposed contract is the product of over four years of negotiations and a previously rejected tentative agreement.

The new agreement calls for a 20 percent pay increase over the four-year span of the contract and an enhanced 401k plan. The agreement also provides overtime pay and much improved work rules, according to representatives with Teamsters Local 747 in Houston, TX, the pilots' union.

"The crewmembers of Kalitta Air have endured a lengthy negotiations process up to this point. With the crewmembers' unity and support, we were able to achieve an agreement that provides much needed pay increases, better work rules and an overall better quality of life," said Teamsters Local 747 President E.E. Sowell.

The agreement is subject to ratification by the membership and the ballots will be mailed out on June 20, 2007. The crewmembers will have 30 days to review the agreement and return their ballot to the Teamsters Local 747 offices by July 19. The ballots will be counted and certified on July 20.

Based in Ypsilanti, MI, Kalitta Air operates a fleet of Boeing 747s and 727s. Kalitta employs approximately 179 flight deck crewmembers.

FMI: www.ibt747.org, www.kalittaair.com