Delta Air Lines will reduce its corporate staffing, the carrier confirmed in a Thursday statement, but did not specify which or how many roles would be affected. The cuts represent a "small adjustment to corporate/management positions," according to Delta, which added that no frontline roles—such as pilots and crew—would be affected.
CNBC reported Delta's plans late Wednesday.
"As Delta plans for 2024 and beyond, we continue evolving our business to better manage costs and set Delta up for success. We heavily invested in our business to manage the rapid return of demand for our product over the past few years," Delta said in the statement.
"While we're not yet back to full capacity, now is the time to make adjustments to programs, budgets and organizational structures across Delta to meet our stated goals—one part of this effort includes adjustments to corporate staffing in support of these changes," Delta continued. "These decisions are never made lightly but always with care and respect for our impacted team members and the Delta family. Delta people who run our operation and serve our customers are the lifeblood of our business. Delta didn't make any frontline layoffs during the pandemic, and we aren't making them now."
On Oct. 12, Delta reported record third-quarter revenue of $15.5 billion, up 11 percent year over year, with net income of $1.1 billion. "Our operational reliability continues to strengthen, thanks to our people, and I'm pleased to recognize their outstanding efforts with over $1 billion accrued year-to-date towards profit sharing," Delta CEO Ed Bastian said then in a quarterly earnings statement.
In 2022, the carrier hired about 25,000 new employees as it "continued to rebuild the airline," according to its latest annual report. As of Dec. 31, 2022, Delta had approximately 95,000 full-time employees. As of Dec. 31, 2019, Delta employed about 91,000 full-time people. By Dec. 31, 2020, after the Covid-19 pandemic hit, that number was approximately 74,000, with about 18,000 people taking early retirements and "voluntary separation programs."
Some airlines have noted on earnings calls that fuel and labor costs have increased in 2023. Through Sept. 30, Delta for 2023 reported a 13 percent year-over-year increase in total operating expenses. Salaries and related costs had increased 23 percent during the period to $10.8 billion. Fuel costs, however, were down 6 percent to $8.1 billion. Delta last month projected fourth-quarter fuel costs to remain steady or increase up to 2 percent year over year.