American Airlines Service Employees Agree To New Contract

American Airlines has reached a tentative agreement on a new joint collective bargaining agreement with the airline's passenger service employees.

The company has reached a deal with the Communications Workers of America and International Brotherhood of Teamsters.

The CWA-IBT represents 14,500 U.S.-based American Airlines gate and ticket agents, Premium Service representatives, Reservations representatives and Travel Center representatives.

The five-year deal will increase each service worker's pay by an average of 30 percent. The company says only about two-dozen of the affected workers are in Tulsa.

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"Today's tentative agreement provides significant pay raises to our team members, while preserving jobs and facilitating growth," said Kerry Philipovitch, American's senior vice president for customer experience. "Our agents and representatives have played a critical role in our integration and we thank them for the superior service they provide to our customers every day. We would also like to thank the CWA-IBT for their professionalism and for advocating for their members, and to both negotiating teams for their dedication and hard work toward reaching an agreement."

Neither the company nor the union released details of the agreement. The news release said the CWA-IBT will share details directly with its membership.

American Airlines merged with US Airways in 2013 and finally began officially operating as a single company last month.

10/16/2015: Related Story: U.S. Airways Flight Marks End Of Merger With American

The company has begun negotiations with the Transport Workers Union and the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, the two unions that jointly represent its mechanics and related workers. It will be the last work group to reach a deal with the company after the merger. 

A company spokesman said it hopes to reach a deal with the mechanics as soon as possible.