WASHINGTON, July 16, 2025 – Brian Bryant, International President of the 600,000-member IAM Union, and Richie Johnsen, IAM Union Air Transport Territory General Vice President, issued the following statement in response to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia ordering Delta Air Lines to pay $8.1 million to settle alleged false claims act violations related to the Payroll Support Program:
“This settlement confirms what the IAM has said since 2020—Delta Air Lines took billions in taxpayer-funded relief money under the condition that workers’ jobs, pay and benefits would be protected, and then violated that agreement.
“The U.S. government has now validated our long-standing concerns: Delta’s actions were not just unethical but unlawful. The airline may not have reduced hourly wages, but it used mandatory unpaid leave and reduced scheduling to slash weekly and monthly pay, gutting the very protections the CARES Act was designed to uphold.
“In letters to the CEOs of Delta and JetBlue in 2020, 13 Senators led by Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) wrote, “Your workers supported relief for airlines on the condition that their jobs, pay, and benefits would be protected. On April 23, 2020, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers wrote you a letter opposing your mandatory time off policy, and noting that, ‘The IAM, along with the all the other AFL-CIO affiliated transportation unions, and Delta JetBlue workers, fought for the federal stimulus to protect airline workers and save the airline industry from the ravages of the novel coronavirus pandemic,’ but that your company is ‘using that good faith support of airline workers around the country and at every carrier to [undermine the interest of your own workforces].’
“Delta arrogantly ignored the law, its workers, and even direct appeals from members of Congress. This $8.1 million penalty is long overdue, but still falls short of fully compensating the workers and families who were financially harmed.
“This is just one of many reasons why the IAM is organizing Delta workers across the country. Without a union contract, Delta management alone holds the power. Delta workers deserve a real voice on the job, legal protections, and a union that will fight for them in moments like this.
“The IAM remains committed to holding any employer accountable for misuse of public funds at the expense of working people. This case should serve as a warning: workers’ rights are not optional, and corporations are not above the law.”
The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) is one of North America’s largest and most diverse industrial trade unions, representing approximately 600,000 active and retired members in the aerospace, defense, airlines, railroad, transit, healthcare, automotive, and other industries across the United States and Canada.
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