Delta Becomes First Major Airline to Pay Flight Attendants for Boarding Time

​Delta Air Lines is departing from the common industry practice of not paying flight attendants for boarding time, announcing that as of June 2, it would start paying them before the airplane doors close.

The move is a first for a major U.S. airline, according to NPR, which noted that most airlines begin paying flight attendants only once all passengers are seated and the plane's doors are shut.

Airline observers speculated that the decision came partly to try and head off a unionization drive among flight attendants at Delta. The change will be calculated on top of a recently announced 4 percent pay increase that takes effect May 1.

In a statement, Delta said, "The addition of boarding pay to flight attendant compensation is a testament to Delta's longstanding commitment to deliver industry-leading pay to our industry-leading team while enhancing our operational reliability for customers."

FLSA Exemption

Airline employees are covered by the Railway Labor Act (RLA), noted Thomas Payne, an attorney with Barnes & Thornburg in Indianapolis.

Section 13(b)(3) of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) has an exemption for employees who are covered by the RLA.

Payne added, "Practically, these employees are likely to be making more than minimum wage."

Airline employees who are unionized rely on a collective bargaining agreement for their wages. Those who are not unionized, such as the flight attendants at Delta, are paid subject to the employer's pay policies, he noted. "Many of the industry wages are the result of collective bargaining agreements," he said.

Tight Labor Market

"An airline seeking to gain an advantage in hiring, particularly in our tight labor market, might believe that paying flight attendants for work on the ground will help that airline attract better talent. I could also see how this would generate positive employee relations and public support," Payne said.

"Delta is setting itself apart from its competitors in establishing this new policy and could benefit from it in attracting new talent," he stated. "Delta may also see this as a positive employee relations move that could help [it] stay above market in wages and remain without a union."

He noted that the change could pressure Delta's competitors to adopt a similar policy.

In light of the current tight labor market, employers typically need to be responsive to competitive market forces when negotiating wage rates and the parameters for compensable time—such as work hours, schedules, shift premiums and mandatory overtime—to enable employers to attract and retain talent, said Thomas Servodidio, an attorney with Duane Morris in Philadelphia.

"In my experience, these same market forces are prompting employers in many industries to take a fresh look at the economics of their collective bargaining agreements to ensure that they are providing competitive pay and benefits," he said.

'Quick Decision'

"Because Delta was facing an organizing campaign from The Association of Flight Attendants, [it] had to make a quick decision regarding whether to fight this issue or acquiesce on what can only be seen as truly work time in any other industry," said Steven Horowitz, an attorney with Horowitz Law Group in Far Hills, N.J.

"However, for The Association of Flight Attendants to be taking full credit for this move by Delta is overstating their importance," he added. "With the uptick of elections at the NLRB [National Labor Relations Board] and the situations involving Amazon and Starbucks sucking all of the oxygen out of the room with the media, this union should be thanking those organizing campaigns as well for any additional benefits that Delta is currently offering to avoid unionization."

Nonetheless, The Association of Flight Attendants said, "This new policy is the direct result of our organizing," according to NPR. "As we get closer to filing for our union vote, management is getting nervous."