Delta Air Lines announced on Monday that it will begin to pay flight attendants during boarding, while in the past they would not start to get paid until the boarding door closes.
Delta became the first U.S. airline to do so, as their flight attendants will make half of their hourly rates for boarding starting on June 2, according to a company memo, per CNBC.
The new pay "further recognizes how important your role is on board to ensuring a welcoming, safe and on-time start to each flight," Delta said in the memo to flight attendants, according to USA Today.
The additional pay rate is applied to the scheduled boarding time, "which is set at 40 minutes for domestic narrowbody jets, 45 minutes for domestic widebody planes, and 50 minutes for transoceanic flights," according to Business Insider.
"It is important to note that the boarding pay is based on scheduled boarding time, so flight attendants are not paid extra for extended delays on the ground," Business Insider added.
Although, the boarding pay would be added on top to the 4% raises that Delta announced in March for its employees. Those raises are set to begin on May 1 and applies to most Delta employees.
The Association for Flight Attendants started their union campaign in late 2019, and released a statement after the boarding pay was announced.
"This new policy is the direct result of our organizing—and a desperate attempt to prevent their other new boarding policy (D+40) from creating the kind of anger that it deserves," the AFA said. "As we get closer to filing for our union vote, management is getting nervous."
The union represents a large number of flight attendants at competing airlines like American, Southwest, and United.
However, the 20,000-plus Delta flight attendants are not represented by the union, according to CNBC.
"Today, let's celebrate that our organizing is pushing management to do more than they would have without being challenged," the AFA said. "And let’s double down on our campaign so we can secure a contract that locks in all of these benefits AND ensures we have a say in our pay, benefits and working conditions every day at Delta."
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