FedEx pilots, represented by the Air Line Pilots Association, Int’l (ALPA), responded to the company’s declaration of a quarterly dividend. In a press release issued today, FedEx Corporation announced a quarterly cash dividend of $1.26 per share on its common stock. Capt. Billy Wilson, chair of the FedEx ALPA Master Executive Council, issued the following response:
“Today’s dividend announcement by FedEx Corporation is a facade. This dividend is not based on successful competition like it should be. The bottom line is that the dividend came straight from FedEx pilots’ pockets. The dividend came because of FedEx management’s refusal to provide an industry-leading contract to its pilots instead of improved performance against its competitors, which used to be the FedEx way. It came by essentially taxing the very people who help generate the service and commitment that built the brand and attract customers and talented employees. It came as FedEx embarrassingly continues to encourage its pilots—the best and most accomplished in the industry who chose FedEx over carriers like Delta and United—to leave for regional carriers and a cash prize. So don’t celebrate this dividend; it’s not what it seems.”
