Strike for Allegiant Pilots Moves a Step Closer

According to a Teamsters news release sent to AirlineGeeks on Thursday morning, the NMB can offer binding arbitration to resolve remaining labor issues between Allegiant and its Teamsters pilots—should the request be granted.

“If either party declines arbitration, a 30-day ‘cooling-off’ period would begin, after which the pilots could legally strike,” the release stated.

Teamsters Local 2118 represents 1,400 Allegiant Air pilots nationwide. These pilots voted by 97 percent to authorize a strike in November over “frustration with the company’s delays and refusal to address core issues.”

“Since we began negotiations, our goal has been simple: secure a contract that ensures long-term success and security for both our pilots and Allegiant Air,” said Captain Josh Allen, chairman of Local 2118’s Negotiating Committee, in the release. “And every step of the way, Allegiant has refused to offer us that.”

Mediated talks between both parties have gone on now for over two years. The Teamsters said that Allegiant’s latest proposals would allow the airline to deem around 20 percent of its pilots as surplus and “force the rest to fly maximum schedules.”

The Teamsters stated this proposal raises “serious concerns about pilot fatigue, operational reliability and quality of life.”

“It’s impossible to make progress when the company keeps moving the goalposts and demanding more ‘efficiencies’ from an already-stretched pilot group,” said Local 2118 trustee Greg Unterseher, in the release. “Each time our pilots rise to meet the company’s needs with good-faith proposals, Allegiant shifts direction again. Enough is enough—it’s time for Allegiant to finally deliver the fair contract its pilots have earned.”

The request for a release from mediation comes nearly a decade after Allegiant Air successfully received a court order blocking the Teamsters from striking in May 2015.

According to a news release from Allegiant at the time, a court in Las Vegas issued an injunction against Teamsters Local 1224, preventing pilots from striking.

Allegiant spokesperson Sonya Padgett told AirlineGeeks in an emailed statement Thursday that the airline strongly disagrees that it is at the point in negotiations where either party has reason to request a release from mediation.

“The Railway Labor Act (RLA), which governs labor relations in the airline industry, provides a roadmap that must be followed when negotiating a contract,” Padgett said. “It specifically states that only the National Mediation Board—not Allegiant and not Teamsters Local 2118—can declare an impasse in negotiations. The RLA stipulates that four conditions must be met before a work stoppage can occur. It’s important to note that none of those conditions as dictated by the RLA have been met.”

Padgett further stated that Allegiant has offered pilots a “competitive package” which includes an immediate 50 percent average increase in hourly wages that would scale to 70 percent over five years.

“Additionally, we have offered a 50 percent increase in direct contribution to pilots’ retirement benefits, long-term disability benefits until FAA retirement age, paid maternity and paternity leave, and extensive scheduling and quality of life improvements designed to honor seniority and protect our business model,” she said. “We remain committed to the mediation process and are confident that it will help the company and the union achieve our shared goal of reaching an agreement that our pilots are proud to support.”