Delta sharing good year of profits with employees

Delta Air Lines posted a net profit of more than a billion dollars last year, and the company is sharing its good fortune with its some 80,000 employees, including about 13,000 in Minnesota.

Delta employees are getting profit sharing bonuses equal to 6.5 percent of their base pay. Delta marked the award of the payments with employee celebrations around the country today and full-page newspaper ads saluting employees.

In a recorded message to employees, Delta CEO Richard Anderson said they've worked hard to earn their first profit sharing checks since 2007.

"Based on Delta's $1.4 billion profit for 2010, Delta people get a portion of $313 million in profit sharing," Anderson said. "This is money well-earned because it's your hard work and dedication to Delta that has made us successful."

Delta's Minnesota employees include pilots, flight attendants, and reservation agents. They represent about 15 percent of Delta's workforce. If they get a comparable share of the profit-sharing money, the payments will deliver about $50 million to the Minnesota economy.