FedEx Express pilots win 9 percent pay raise in next contract

Pilots for FedEx Express have approved a new four-year work contract, the company and the pilots' union announced Oct. 17.

Almost 95 percent of the pilots voting on the work agreement approved it, the announcement said. Pilots will get a 9 percent pay increase when the contract takes effect Oct. 30, with 3 percent raises scheduled for the next three years.

The new contract also includes improvements in retirement pay, health care and job security, the union said.

FedEx Express is the largest division of Memphis-based FedEx Corp. The cargo airline's 4,700 pilots, represented by the Air Line Pilots Association, began voting on the contract last month.

During contract negotiations, FedEx said an average company pilot earned more than $175,000 a year. The union said that figure was inflated but declined to give a number of its own.

Pay varies according to aircraft size, pilot experience and other variables. The union was unsure what formula FedEx used to estimate average pay.