Delta Offers Pilots 7% to 17.5% Raises, Limited Regional Flights

Delta Air Lines offered its pilots raises ranging from 7% to 17.5% in a contract proposal made Thursday that would limit the amount of flying regional carriers would be allowed to perform.

The proposal, made during negotiations in Atlanta, also abandons Delta’s bid to link pilots’ future raises to the company’s financial performance and shortens the contract length to four years.

The Air Line Pilots Assn. called the proposal “a step in the right direction” but said parts of the proposal remain unacceptable, such as a two-tiered wage system “and management’s desire to negotiate something less than full retroactive pay.”

Atlanta-based Delta’s proposal retains a dual-wage system for its low-cost subsidiary, Delta Express, which Delta says it needs to remain competitive.

Separately Thursday, federal mediators urged Northwest Airlines and the union representing the Minneapolis-based airline’s mechanics to continue their own contract negotiations.

Northwest’s mechanics, cleaners and custodians have been seeking a new contract since late 1996. The two sides have concentrated their talks on wage and retirement issues.

If the Northwest talks are not productive, the board could declare an impasse, triggering a 30-day cooling-off period required under the National Labor Railway Act before the union could strike.

Neither Northwest nor union representatives would comment specifically on the ongoing talks.