Delta Airlines employees to get 5% pay bump amid strong travel demand

(Reuters) -Delta Air Lines Inc said on Tuesday that it would bump up the pay of its employees by 5%, amid an industrywide shortage of workers as airlines look to cash in on robust demand for air travel.

Delta's raise includes a 5% base pay increase for ground and flight attendant employees worldwide at all steps of the pay scale and a 5% pool for eligible merit employees worldwide, the airline's chief executive Ed Bastian wrote in a memo to employees.

The pay hike, which will be effective from April 1, comes at a time when airlines are coming up with attractive pay offers to retain workforce and add staff after a faster-than-expected rebound in the U.S. travel market.

The carrier offered a 34% cumulative pay increase last month to its pilots over three years in a new contract after the Atlanta-based carrier's pilots voted overwhelmingly in October to authorize a strike.

The latest hike includes all employees worldwide, except those covered by an industry or government requirement or collective bargaining agreement.

Shares of Delta were down nearly 2% in afternoon trade.

(Reporting by Nathan Gomes and Kannaki Deka in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri and Shailesh Kuber)