Delta Has Record-Breaking Profit Sharing Pay Out, Regains Investment Grade Credit

Delta Air Lines surpasses Southwest’s record-breaking profit sharing program; pays out $1.5 billion to its employees.

Employees at Delta Air Lines received their portion of the carrier’s profit sharing program on Friday. At $1.5 billion, the payout is the largest one ever in the history of similar corporate programs (beating out Southwest’s $620 million profit, which was announced Thursday). According to the press release, the payouts amount to more than 21 percent of the staff’s eligible 2015 earnings.

To commemorate the occasion, Delta displayed a 50-foot-tall thank you card in front of the general offices in Atlanta, which listed the names of each of the company’s 80,000 employees.

Additionally, the airline took out advertisements in The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and other newspapers in order to thank their team.

CEO Richard Anderson and president Ed Bastian addressed Delta employees in a memo that also circulated Friday: “We are often asked what makes Delta different. The difference is you. Our unique people-focused culture… is the advantage that none of our competitors can match.”

According to the Star Tribune, this is Delta’s sixth consecutive year of distributing profit sharing. Employees received 16 percent of their annual salary last year.

Delta’s 2016 plans include operating on a conservative budget and working to paying down debt, which should be helped by Moody’s Investors Services’ Thursday announcement to upgrade the airline’s debt rating to Baa3. This makes Delta the first U.S.-based legacy carrier to have its rating restored from junk-grade levels.

The carrier also shared its intentions to maintain a sustainable business in 2016, focus on customer and shareholder rewards, and invest in its employees.

[Photo: Delta]