BTS Releases December Passenger Airline Employment Data;

December 2012 Employment Down 2.6 Percent from December 2011

U.S. scheduled passenger airlines employed 379,571 workers in December 2012, 2.6 percent fewer than in December 2011, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) reported today. Scheduled passenger airline categories include network, low-cost, regional and other airlines. This was the fourth consecutive month that full-time equivalent (FTE) employment for U.S. scheduled passenger carriers has been lower than the same month of the previous year. This follows 21 months of increases over the same month of the previous year that began in December 2010 and ended in August 2012.

BTS, a part of the Department’s Research and Innovative Technology Administration, reported that the December 2012 FTE total for scheduled passenger carriers was 10,157 fewer than in December 2011 and is the lowest monthly total for any month since December 2010.

There were 0.5 percent fewer FTEs in December 2012 than in November 2012. Month-to-month changes can be affected by seasonal factors, such as the number of flights and passengers.

The five network airlines that collectively employ two-thirds of the scheduled passenger airline FTEs reported 3.3 percent fewer FTEs in December 2012, the fifth consecutive decline for the group. Delta Air Lines, eliminating positions following its merger with Northwest Airlines, reduced FTEs by 4.5 percent from December 2011. American Airlines, which filed for bankruptcy in November 2011, reduced FTEs by 9.9 percent. United Airlines reported a post-merger total of 82,383 FTEs in December 2012, 1,299 or 1.6 percent more FTEs than the 81,084 United and Continental Airlines reported separately in December 2011. US Airways reported 0.5 percent fewer FTEs while Alaska Airlines increased FTEs by 3.3 percent from December 2011. Network airlines operate a significant portion of flights using at least one hub where connections are made for flights to down-line destinations or spoke cities.

Among the six low-cost carriers, Allegiant Airlines, Virgin America Airlines, Spirit Airlines and JetBlue Airways reported an increase in FTEs. Frontier Airlines was the only low-cost carrier reporting fewer FTEs. Southwest Airlines reported 45,861 FTEs in December 2012 in a joint report following its merger with AirTran Airways. The combined total was 198 or 0.4 percent more than the 45,663 FTEs the two airlines reported separately in December 2011. Low-cost airlines operate under a low-cost business model, with infrastructure and aircraft operating costs below the overall industry average.

See Passenger Airline Employment press release for summary tables and additional data. Historical employment data can be found on the BTS web site.

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