Delta Air Lines gives $122M in annual profit-sharing to Minnesota employees

Delta Air Lines is sharing the love with its workers through $1.4 billion in profit-share bonuses, amounting to approximately $122 million in extra paychecks to its Minnesota-based employees.

Valentine’s Day profit-sharing is a tradition for the Atlanta-based airline dating back to 2007. This year, the average employee will receive a check Friday that represents about 10% of eligible annual earnings, about five weeks' pay, per the company, which is the dominant carrier at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP).

During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Delta did away with or scaled back its bonuses as the airline experienced financial setbacks from limited air travel. Chief External Affairs Officer Peter Carter said it is exciting to see profit-sharing return to pre-pandemic levels, adding the gains from the past year “really [say] a lot about what Delta people have achieved in 2024.”

“This is really about them. We’re celebrating them,” said Carter, who called the pandemic an “existential crisis” for the airline.

Carter said Delta strives to make sure its employees are the best paid in the industry, pointing to a 5% raise the company gave workers last year. He called Delta’s bonuses “the most generous profit-sharing program in the history of corporate America,” saying the amount outpaces United Airlines and American Airlines combined.

The payouts add up to 15% of Delta’s profits in 2024, according to company officials. Last year, Delta shared roughly the same amount across its 100,000 employees — about $1.4 billion — including $124 million for employees with jobs based in Minnesota.

In January, Delta reported strong quarterly and annual profits despite setbacks like the massive CrowdStrike outage, which stemmed from a flawed software update that crippled air travel across the country.

That particularly affected Delta, which canceled thousands of flights, resulting in approximately $380 million in cancellation losses and $170 million in other expenses, the company reported in October.

CEO Ed Bastian announced this year’s profit-sharing details last month, calling the bonuses “well-earned.”

“This will represent one of the top three profit-sharing payouts in Delta’s history and is expected to be more than the rest of the industry combined,” Bastian said during a call with analysts and reporters about the company’s earnings. “The Delta people are our No. 1 competitive advantage, and our 2024 performance reflects their commitment to best-in-class operations and service for our customers.”

Delta has commanded MSP since its 2008 merger with Northwest Airlines. A recently completed passenger traffic study found nearly 70% of travelers flew with Delta last year, according to the Metropolitan Airports Commission.

Bonuses for Delta employees are even across all work groups, Carter said, including the majority who are not under collective bargaining agreements. Only pilots and dispatchers, which together make up about 20% of Delta’s full-time workforce, are unionized.

After the pandemic, the first year Delta shared profits was in 2023. Total bonuses tallied up to about $563 million, including $48 million among Minnesota employees.

Delta employs about 100,000 people across the U.S., including 9,300 jobs in Minnesota. Roughly 7,300 employees reside in the state, according to the company.

Number of Minnesota-based Delta jobs: 9,300

Number of Minnesotans who work for Delta: 7,300

Total profit-sharing payout across the U.S.: $1.4 billion

Total to Minnesota-based workforce: $122 million

Average bonus: 10% of eligible earnings