Negotiations Under the Railway Labor Act
In the three years since Contract 2019 was ratified, thousands of pilots have joined Delta. Whether you have been through multiple rounds of Section 6 negotiations or are about to start your first, a review of the legal process that governs collective bargaining in our industry will serve as a timely refresher for some, and a good educational piece for others.
RLA History The Railway Labor Act (RLA) is the federal law that governs representation and collective bargaining in the rail and airline industries. It first became law in 1926 to provide, in part, a means to resolve labor disputes between railroad employees and management. In 1936, the law was amended by Congress to include airline employees. The primary purpose of the RLA is to avoid disruptions to interstate commerce and the national transportation system. Therefore, the Act includes a process for direct negotiations, required mediation, potential arbitration (if both sides agree), and ultimately, self-help.
National Mediation Board The RLA is administered by the National Mediation Board (NMB), a government agency consisting of a three-member panel of political appointees selected by the President of the United States and confirmed by the U.S. Senate to serve three-year terms. By law, one member of the NMB must be from a political party different than the President. (As of February 2026, the Board members are Chair Loren E. Sweatt and Linda Puchala. The third Board member position is currently unfilled.)
Section 6 of the RLA The RLA imposes a duty on the parties to make every reasonable effort to make and maintain agreements. The name "Section 6" comes from the provision of the RLA that provides the legal framework and basis for negotiating contracts in the airline and railroad industries when they become amendable. “Section 6” is often used as shorthand for RLA collective bargaining.
Amendable Dates & Status Quo A major difference between the RLA and the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), which governs labor relations for workers in most other private industries, is that RLA contracts do not expire but instead become amendable. That means that the contract remains in full force even after the amendable date passes.
Until the RLA Section 6 process has been fully exhausted, the provisions of the current agreement legally remain in effect. This is commonly referred to as the duty to “maintain the status quo” and is another key difference between the RLA and the NLRA.
Throughout negotiations, while the status quo remains in effect, neither party is permitted to engage in self-help. This means that pilots are not permitted to engage in job actions, slowdowns, or a strike nor is the Company permitted to impose its last offer, make unilateral changes in rates of pay, rules, and working conditions, or lock-out its employees.
The amendable date for the current Pilot Working Agreement (PWA) is December 31, 2026.
Bargaining Notice The union, the Company, or both may send the other party “notice of intended change” no later than 30 days prior to the agreement’s amendable date. This written notice, known as the “Section 6 notice,” starts the formal bargaining process.
Section 29 A. of the Delta Pilot Working Agreement (PWA) stipulates that either party has the right to serve Section 6 notice to amend the contract up to 270 days prior to the December 31, 2026 amendable date — as early as April 2026. Negotiations kick off when the union and company exchange proposed changes to the contract, often referred to as “contract openers.”
Direct Negotiations The first stage of bargaining between labor and management (referred to as “conferences” under the RLA) are known as direct negotiations. As the name implies, these negotiations must be conducted directly or face-to-face between the parties, without government supervision. In prior Section 6 negotiations between Delta and ALPA, the parties have signed a Negotiations Protocol Agreement that outlines the process and dates of planned direct negotiations.
Often, sections of the PWA are tentatively agreed upon during the direct negotiations phase of bargaining without the need for mediation. Such agreements are considered “tentative” as it recognizes the possibility of changes to those sections before the final comprehensive agreement is reached. Importantly, a tentative agreement (TA) must still be ratified before becoming effective. Under the RLA, there is not a set time concerning the duration of the direct negotiations phase of Section 6 bargaining.
According to Section 29 A. of the PWA, if a comprehensive TA between ALPA and Delta is not reached by March 31, 2027, the parties will jointly apply for mediation services from the NMB.
Mediation Either party may apply for mediation at any time during direct negotiations under the RLA. Mediation requests are typically made when direct negotiations are not moving forward constructively or when one party declines to meet regularly.
Upon receiving an application for mediation, the NMB will docket the case. It assigns one of its staff mediators to meet with the parties to help facilitate discussion and resolution of all issues.
A mediator is an impartial third party. Mediators have negotiation training and experience that helps bridge gaps between the parties' positions by offering different potential solutions, engaging in joint and separate brainstorming, and encouraging consideration of relevant comparisons and alternatives.
The mediator cannot impose an agreement. Nor does the mediator judge whether an agreement is a good or bad agreement from either party’s point of view. Instead, the mediator tries to move the process forward by scheduling and setting the location for meetings, establishing an agenda that promotes constructive discussion, and making procedural and substantive recommendations to resolve open issues. The mediator’s sole purpose is to help the parties reach an agreement. With considerable authority over the negotiating process, the mediator has the power to slow down or even “park” the negotiations for weeks or months. Alternatively, they can speed up meeting schedules based on an assessment of the parties' conduct.
Throughout negotiations, the mediator observes and reports on the conduct of the parties during the mediation process to the NMB members. It's not unusual for a senior staff mediator, or even one of the three NMB members, to join talks during the mediation process. Talks typically continue until the NMB determines that further mediation is unlikely to produce an agreement. At that point, the Board itself customarily reviews the case and will sometimes hear directly from the parties to discuss options with them for further processing of the case. The Board may decide to pause or recess mediation, continue mediation or determine that an impasse exists, and no further mediation will be productive. The Board has the authority and discretion to keep bargaining parties in mediation for substantial periods of time, which in some cases has lasted for years. The Supreme Court has described the bargaining process under the RLA as “almost interminable” with pilot negotiations stretching months or even years beyond their amendable date.
Proffer of Binding Arbitration If the NMB determines that an impasse exists, the Board will proffer binding arbitration as a way of resolving outstanding issues. If both parties accept the proffer of arbitration, the remaining open issues will be submitted for decision by a neutral third-party arbitrator or arbitration board. While uncommon in the airline industry, an arbitration decision resolving the open terms made after a proffer has been accepted is final and binding and not subject to membership ratification. Should either party decline the offer of binding arbitration, a 30-day cooling off period begins. The Board has sole discretion as to when to start the clock on this period. At the end of the 30-day cooling off period, either party is free to take self-help measures.
30-Day Cooling-Off Period The 30-day cooling-off period is an RLA-specified period during which the parties are urged to reconsider their positions and re-evaluate whether they have any flexibility or movement on those positions. Both parties are required to continue to observe the status quo obligation during this time frame. The NMB typically offers “super mediation” near the end of the 30 days during which the Board tries to conduct intensive problem-solving on open issues.
Presidential Emergency Board Upon receiving notification from the NMB that a labor dispute “threaten(s) substantially to interrupt interstate commerce to a degree such as to deprive any section of the country of essential transportation service,” the President of the United States may appoint a Presidential Emergency Board or PEB. This Board, typically made up of labor arbitrators, will hold hearings and make recommendations regarding open issues. The PEB has 30 days to investigate and render its report to the President, although the President can extend that period.
Each party may, but is not required, to accept recommendations of the PEB. If both parties do not accept the PEB recommendations or otherwise reach an agreement, the status quo must be maintained for another 30 days after the President receives the report. Only then are both parties free to engage in self-help – unless Congress intervenes to legislate the terms of the agreement. While PEBs are rarely used to settle airline labor disputes, they have been more common in the rail industry with one convening as recently as 2022. In that case, Congress voted to impose an agreement based on the PEB-recommended terms.
Self-Help Self-help is the legal term for the economic tools that each party is permitted to deploy at the end of the cooling-off period to exert pressure on the other side. Under the RLA, both bargaining parties must maintain the status quo and are therefore prohibited from engaging in self-help until an impasse is declared by the NMB and the 30-day cooling off period ends. However, after the clock runs out on the 30-day cooling off period, the union may then engage in a strike, and the company may impose new contract terms, lock-out its employees, or hire replacement workers (unless the President empanels a PEB).
While self-help activities are not allowed during the status quo period, the union is permitted to engage in other activities such as informational picketing and communicating with its members and the public via billboards, social media ads and other venues to publicize the dispute with the flying public and its own members.
Conclusion Throughout the RLA process, your Delta MEC sets the Association’s direction for negotiations. Information from pilot polling, pilot surveys and feedback to the Delta MEC and local council representatives guides your pilot leaders throughout the Section 6 process. Your input and support throughout the RLA bargaining process is essential.
The above information is intended to provide an overview of the Section 6 process under the RLA. With Section 6 preparations well underway, we encourage every Delta pilot to visit the Contract 2026 page on the Delta MEC website for the latest negotiation updates and resources.
Look for additional information about Section 6 negotiations in a future Road to the TA. |