The Bureau of Transportation Statistics, a branch of the United States Department of Transportation, recently released its April report on U.S. passenger airline employment levels.
Compared to April 2014, U.S. passenger airlines now employ 2.6 percent more employees. April marks the 17th month in a row that the airlines have exceed the full-time equivalent (FTE) employment rates compared to the same month in the last year, and hit the highest mark since September 2008.
The number of FTEs increased month-to-month by 0.9 percent between March and April, marking the fourth monthly increase in a row. Categories with scheduled passenger airlines include low-cost, network, regional and other airlines.
Five airlines employ approximately two-thirds of the FTEs — a 2.4 percent increase in FTEs compared to April 2014. Delta Air Lines, American Airlines, Alaska Airlines and US Airways showed a rise in FTEs since April 2014. United Airlines showed a decrease in FTEs.
From month-to-month, there was a 0.8 percent increase in FTEs with network airlines between March and April. This marks the seventh month in a row that has demonstrated an increase.
