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With 2025 financial results now reported across the US airline industry, one of the most striking contrasts isn’t just the earnings, but how much the airlines are handing back to employees. Among the “big three,” Delta Air Lines again posted the strongest results. United Airlines followed and American Airlines trailed in a distant third place. That gap is now clearly reflected in employee profit-sharing payouts and the reaction among American’s workforce has been swift and frustrated.
AA: I expect unhappiness from this
@JonNYC reports that American confirmed that its 2025 profit-sharing pool will equate to roughly 0.3% of eligible pay for employees. For someone earning $50,000, that translates to a bonus of only $150. While American employees are not accustomed to Delta-like payouts, the cut still stings: last year, workers received between 1% and 1.5% ($500 and $750 in this example). In 2016, they received a peak 3% or $1,500 using the math above.
Contrast that with Delta, where employees will receive 8.9% of eligible pay for 2025. This is nearly 30 times higher than American’s payout for a worker with the same salary. An employee making $50,000 annually will receive $4,450. United also outperformed American, though with a smaller pool than Delta.
For many at American, the reaction isn’t only about the money, it’s about performance, strategy, and morale. Despite having a valuable loyalty program and major hub presence, American continues to struggle with profitability and competitive positioning. The carrier’s unit costs remain elevated, but without the network, premium strategy, or business travel base to support them. Employees see that structural disadvantage reflected directly in their checks.
Meanwhile, Delta’s profit-sharing has become a point of cultural pride for the Atlanta-based airline. Many Delta employees openly plan large purchases or financial goals around the payout. At American, the reality is far different where workers joke that their profit-sharing might cover dinner.
The profit-sharing disparity underscores a broader debate about American’s long-term direction. Analysts increasingly describe the airline as “a high-cost low-cost carrier” that operating like an LCC in product and network (yet carrying a legacy carrier cost structure). Without clear strategic differentiation, American’s margins continue to lag. For employees, that translates into a simple conclusion: without profit, there is nothing meaningful to share. And without a shift in strategy, future years may not look much different. Couple this with inflated salaries at the top and you have a recipe for really unhappy employees.
Anthony’s Take: As the industry enters another competitive year, Delta’s profits reinforce its operational and commercial strength, United continues to climb, and American is once again struggling to keep pace. The 2025 profit-sharing season may be only one data point, but for tens of thousands of employees it captures the story of the US airline industry’s widening gap.
(Featured Image Credit: American Airlines.)
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Advertiser & Editorial Disclosure: The Bulkhead Seat earns an affiliate commission for anyone approved through the links above This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. We work to provide the best publicly available offers to our readers. We frequently update them, but this site does not include all available offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities.
