DHL Pilots Rally Against Management

Nearly 50 pilots braved a heat index of over 100 degrees to picket outside of DHL’s North American Headquarters in Plantation, Fla. DHL announced at the end of May its intention to shift all of its North American air cargo operations to UPS—one of its main competitors. This agreement would effectively put ASTAR out of business and eliminate over 10,000 jobs. Pilots from Spirit, Delta, FedEx, and CCI came out to support their ASTAR brothers and sisters in their fight against this proposed agreement. Members of the ALPA National SPSC Committee were on hand to assist in the protest and walked the picket line. Representatives of ASTAR management, including its chief counsel, held picket signs and expressed their admiration and encouragement for the pilots. The ALPA rat made an appearance—until the police demanded it be taken down.

Pat Walsh, the MEC Chairman, was interviewed by both television and print journalists about the potential devastating effects of this agreement. In addition to the marching pilots, there was a plane towing a banner echoing the message on the pickets signs—“DHL/UPS Antitrust Anti-Worker.” A full-page ad ran in the Sun Sentinel that morning and, for hours into the evening, a mobile billboard circled the DHL office building asking, “Is this the end of DHL?”

ALPA will continue to inform the media and legislators about this questionable deal that will affect thousands of hardworking Americans and may violate U.S. antitrust legislation.