FedEx, Pilots Panel OK Tentative Contract

Federal Express Corp. and negotiators for its pilots union said they reached agreement on a four-year labor contract. The agreement was approved by the FedEx Pilots Assn. board and will be voted on by all pilots of the Memphis-based company at the beginning of the year. Mike Akin, president of the union, said the board will recommend the contract to its members “without reservation.” The union represents 3,400 FedEx pilots. FedEx and the pilots reached a breakthrough in the discussions last week, when the union said the company had allowed contract coverage to be extended to the company’s only foreign-based pilots, in the Philippines. Negotiations began in June. Ratification of the contract is expected to take about 30 days after the proposed agreement is sent to the membership.