Pilot pay could take off

HONOLULU — Hawaiian Airlines has reached a tentative agreement with its pilots union on a six-year contract that will increase wages for some of its pilots by as much as 40 percent the first year.

Wages for the remaining five years would go up between 2 percent and 3 percent, The Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported. That means the airline’s most experienced captains flying the largest planes would see their pay jump to $313,000, up from $223,000.

“It definitely will be a significant gain year over year for the pilots,” said union leader Hoon Lee with the Air Line Pilots Association.

The union, which had been threatening to strike if no deal was reached, is still reviewing the agreement before it gets sent to its 674 members for a vote.

“Both parties are currently confirming specific changes and completing remaining contract language,” the ALPA said in a statement. “Once that is completed, pilot leaders will review and vote on whether to send the tentative agreement to Hawaiian Airlines pilots for possible member ratification.”

The deal comes after nearly two years of negotiations and about a year in federal mediation.

The union leaders voted 3-1 to approve the agreement, with Lee casting the sole dissenting vote.

Lee said he did not choose to support the agreement because he did not think it reached a market-rate contract with full retroactive value.

“But this decision will be up to the membership,” he said. “The last thing I wanted to do was stand in the way of the democratic process of membership voting for a comprehensive agreement, and I wanted to allow them to evaluate if it’s worth supporting or rejecting.”

Under the contract, pilots will receive about $40 million in retroactive pay dating back to when their contract ended in September 2015. The hourly wages and increases vary depending on the type of aircraft, with the largest increase of 40 percent going to Airbus A330 captains with 12 years of experience.

Hawaiian declined to comment on the agreement.