It's a good day for nearly 80,000 Delta Air Lines employees, who will get the company's biggest-ever profit-sharing checks for last year's performance.
Delta, which has a major hub at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport and other operations around the state, said the profit-sharing checks will total $506.3 million based on 2013 financial results.
"Thank you to Delta's nearly 80,000 people worldwide who made 2013 a banner year for Delta through the strong work ethic and values they demonstrate every day," Delta CEO Richard Anderson said in a statement. "This year's profit-sharing payment is a reflection of their hard work and of our conviction that if we take care of our employees, they take care of our customers and that enables our shareowners to succeed."
Employees will get checks equal to 8.26 percent of their eligible earnings last year. Delta earned $10.5 billion in 2013 on revenue of $37.8 billion.
Profit-sharing at Delta is in addition to monthly employee bonuses that last year totaled $91.7 million.
Delta said that over the last four years it has paid employees profit-sharing and monthly bonuses of $1.7 billion.
In 2012, Delta profit-sharing totaled $372 million, partly because it was based on a lower percentage of workers' eligible earnings, 6.67 percent. Other bonuses totaled $91 million in 2012.
Delta's employment in Minnesota was unavailable Monday because of the holiday, said a spokeswoman.
