JetBlue Offers Improved Merger Proposal to Spirit

JetBlue Chief Executive Officer Robin Hayes released a letter to Spirit employees who are following the upcoming shareholder vote and JetBlue’s proxy campaign. Hayes said the message was released to ensure that Spirit employees are aware of the carrier’s commitment to them should a merger move forward.

Hello Spirit Team Members,

It’s been a very busy few months in the airline industry, especially for both of our companies. We know this process may be unsettling, and we thought you might like to hear from us directly. We do not want all the conversation about a “hostile” takeover to discourage you about your potential future with JetBlue should we reach an agreement with Spirit.

More than anything, we want you to know that we are genuinely excited about the opportunity to combine with Spirit. We have so much respect for Spirit Team Members and believe we can bring together the best of both airlines to create a new national low-fare carrier to go up against the Big Four – just as JetBlue has been doing for 22 years.

JetBlue has an incredibly strong culture and set of values, and we know you do too. If we have the opportunity to move forward as one company, we plan to offer you the benefits of working for JetBlue:

—We offer higher pay and better benefits than either Spirit or Frontier.

—A combined JetBlue and Spirit will grow and add more well-paying jobs across our network.

—While we are New York’s Hometown Airline®, we have deep roots in Central and South Florida and intend to further grow our existing campuses in Orlando and Fort Lauderdale.

—As we said before, we will match retention incentives for all those who have been promised them. We believe it is critical that great talent stays through the transition and pursues long-term careers with JetBlue.

—We are proud to have never furloughed any Crewmembers or sent a WARN Act notice in our 22-year history, and we continue to stand behind our no furlough commitment.

—With our growing network, Crewmember travel benefits can take you from Canada to Peru, and across the pond to London – with more European destinations on the way – all while enjoying our award-winning JetBlue Experience, including our premium experience, Mint.

—Speaking of flying, we are modernizing our fleet to all-Airbus, with incredible new interiors and an order book of A321neos, LRs, XLRs, and A220 aircraft.