American is committed to working cooperatively with the APA to achieve a mutually beneficial agreement that is responsive to the needs of our pilots, shareholders and other constituents. It is American’s hope that the parties will engage in constructive discussions resulting in an agreement that will secure the long-term future of the company and its pilots by finding new ways to improve productivity and efficiency, making American more competitive in this challenging environment.

Some of the objectives the company seeks to achieve, and which were presented to the APA Negotiating Committee, are listed below and reflect the company’s desire for a problem-solving approach to these negotiations.

• Explore ways to achieve a competitive unit cost per block hour that promotes sustainable growth for the company and employment security for pilots via increased productivity and effective cost controls.
  
  
• Explore scheduling flexibility that recognizes pilots’ need for work-life balance and stability, while allowing the company to efficiently and predictably utilize its workforce.
  
  
• Address increasing health & welfare and retirement benefit costs by exploring market-based benefit plan designs and employee cost sharing.
  
  
• Examine ways to reduce the cost of contract administration and dispute resolution by simplifying processes and contractual language.
  
  
• Establish a result- and metric-based compensation system that provides financial rewards consistent with the performance of pilots and the company.
  
  
• Discuss options to enhance the company’s global network.