DALLAS, June 11, 2012 /PRNewswire/ — Southwest Airlines (NYSE: LUV) and the Transport Workers Union (TWU) 550, representing the carrier’s more than 180 Dispatchers, announced today that the Dispatchers overwhelmingly ratified its tentative agreement with the Company. The agreement is for a new, five-year contract through November 2014. The previous contract became amendable November 2009.
[quote]”It took a while to get there, but this new agreement recognizes our Southwest Dispatchers for their many years of hard work and productivity,” said Matt Hafner, Southwest Airlines Vice President of the Operations Coordination Center (OCC), which includes the Dispatchers. “I want to commend our negotiation teams and the National Mediation Board Mediator for never losing sight of the end goal?to deliver an industry leading and mutually beneficial agreement that rewards our Dispatchers for the 14 years they persevered under the same contract.”[/quote]
In early 2011, Southwest sought assistance from the National Mediation Board (NMB) through the mediation process as defined by the Railway Labor Act.
Southwest Airlines continues to differentiate itself from other low-fare carriers ? offering a reliable product with exemplary Customer Service. Southwest Airlines is the nation’s largest carrier in terms of originating domestic passengers boarded and has acquired AirTran Airways, now a wholly owned subsidiary of Southwest Airlines Co. Southwest serves 73 cities in 38 states and remains one of the most honored airlines in the world known for its commitment to the triple bottom line of Performance, People, and Planet. To read more about how Southwest is doing its part to be a good citizen, visit southwest.com/cares to read the Southwest Airlines One Report?. Based in Dallas, Southwest currently operates more than 3,300 flights a day and has more than 39,000 Employees.