International Brotherhood of Teamsters and Horizon Air Reach Tentative Agreement on Proposed Five-Year Contract Extension

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Sep 23, 2013, 01:00 ET

SEATTLE, Sept. 23, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Horizon Air and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters today jointly announced a tentative agreement on a proposed five-year contract extension covering the airline's 280 aircraft technicians, fleet service agents and other fleet support positions.

The proposed contract will provide Horizon technicians and fleet support employees a wage increase and several quality of life enhancements. The membership is scheduled to vote on the contract extension in late October. If approved, the agreement would go into effect in early November and become amendable in December 2019.

"Mechanic representatives, assisted by the Teamsters, met with the company to chisel out a contract extension well before the amendable date," said Curtis Bernier, Horizon Air technician and IBT shop steward. "There are some very good provisions for consideration and it is now up to the membership to make the final decision."

"This tentative agreement recognizes the value of our skilled and dedicated technicians, fleet service agents and other equipment technicians, whose dedication to safety and excellence are a key element to our operational excellence," said Glenn Johnson, Horizon Air president and executive vice president of Alaska Air Group. "I applaud the hard work of the negotiations team, who are to be commended for reaching a tentative agreement before the amendable date of the contract."

Under the Railway Labor Act, which governs collective bargaining agreements in the airline industry, contracts do not expire. Instead they become amendable. The current contract for Horizon Air's technicians and fleet services employees was last ratified in December 2010 and was scheduled to become amendable on Dec. 16, 2014.

Horizon Air is a subsidiary of Alaska Air Group and flies to 39 cities across the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Alaska Airlines, a subsidiary of Alaska Air Group (NYSE: ALK), together with its partner regional airlines, serves 95 cities through an expansive network in Alaska, the Lower 48, Hawaii, Canada and Mexico. Alaska Airlines has ranked "Highest in Customer Satisfaction Among Traditional Network Carriers" in the J.D. Power and Associates North America Airline Satisfaction Study^SM for six consecutive years from 2008 to 2013. For reservations, visit www.alaskaair.com. For more news and information, visit the Alaska Airlines Newsroom at www.alaskaair.com/newsroom.

SOURCE Alaska Air Group