American Airlines to share MAX compensation from Boeing with workers
American Airlines, the second-largest operator of Boeing 737 MAX aircraft in the U.S., won't see the planes back in service until at least April.
The grounding has affected the company's bottom line as it's attributed the suspension of various routes to the resulting aircraft shortage.
But now, some of its employees will see a boost in compensation as a result.
American reached a deal with with Boeing to be compensated for some of its losses, and the airline said it will pass some of that money along to its employees.
“Despite the ongoing challenges the grounding has brought, American Airlines team members continue to do an incredible job caring for our customers,” American CEO Doug Parker said in a statement on Monday. "On behalf of the Board of Directors, we are proud to take the step of including this compensation in our 2019 profit-sharing program, even though the compensation will be received over several years.”
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The move is not a surprise. Though a deal with Boeing had not yet been reached, American has said previously – and as recently as last week – that it anticipated sharing some of the compensation with workers.
American's agreement with the manufacturer follows a similar deal between Boeing and Southwest.
The global fleet of 737 MAX aircraft has been grounded since March, following two fatal crashes in five months that left 346 people dead. An automated flight control software known as MCAS is suspected of contributing to both disasters, and Boeing has been working with regulators, airlines and other stakeholders to address the problem — though a workable solution has been more elusive than initially anticipated.
With hundreds of aircraft grounded and hundreds more undelivered, Boeing has faced increasing pressure to respond, and compensate airlines for the unusable planes.
The manufacturer recently announced a temporary suspension of 737 MAX production, which it said would help it deal with the backlog more efficiently.
