The compensation package that Delta Air Lines detailed for its front-line workers last week will likely inject about $42 million into Utah's economy within days after the company emerges from bankruptcy in May.

That figure could climb to around $67 million as more elements of the package go into effect over the ensuing 14 months - roughly $20,000 for each of 3,300 eligible employees stationed at Delta's Salt Lake City International Airport hub.

"My reaction [to the package] went in many directions. I was thrilled. I was excited. I was ecstatic, to say the least. It was a welcome surprise that I honestly did not expect," Eric Schoenbaum, a reservations agent, said Monday.

As fast as possible, Delta will hand out lump sum payments representing 8 percent of eligible employees' 2006 earnings. The airline will also issue shares of new common stock that employees can hold or sell. Employees will also continue to receive monthly incentive pay when the company attains operational goals such as on-time and baggage-handling performance.

Starting July 1, employees will get the first of what may be several pay increases that move their pay toward industry standards. The first bump upward will be as much as 4 percent.

A new profit-sharing plan will pay out at least 15 percent of Delta's annual pre-tax profit, which is net income before taxes. The first payment will be distributed in the first quarter of next year.

Delta said its new defined contribution retirement plan will give employees the opportunity to receive up to 7 percent of their pay in contributions their 401(k) accounts, including an automatic contribution of 2 percent of their pay.

The compensation package has been praised by human resource and labor management experts who say Delta's unusual generosity to employees serves two purposes: It acknowledges the financial sacrifices that the company's 39,000 front-line workers have accepted since the airline filed for bankruptcy in September 2005. And it sends a strong signal from Delta's board of directors and creditors that the airline's post-bankruptcy plans are solid.

"This [compensation package] is very common for executives and one to two ranks down. But to give it to what appears to be a worldwide work force is highly unusual," said Timothy Gardner, assistant professor of organizational leadership and strategy at Brigham Young University's Marriott School of Management.

The sudden injection of $42 million won't change Utah's total personal income of $70 billion by much, said Mark Knold, senior economist at the Utah Department of Workforce Services. Nevertheless, the compensation is significant because it is "new" money that was generated outside Utah.

"You are reaching outside of this economy to bring it into this economy so we can throw it around within this economy. That's probably the best benefit that comes from this whole thing," Knold said.

Schoenbaum, who went to work for Delta only a few days after the bankruptcy filing, will hold his stock on the expectation that the value will increase in the months after Delta exits bankruptcy. He plans to bank his cash payment, but expects that some of it eventually will be spent fixing up his downtown Salt Lake City house.

As for his raise, "it's extra income I didn't plan on, so I'll pay some bills," Schoenbaum said.

Craig Bailey has similar plans. Instead of selling his shares, Bailey, who expects to retire in about four years, will add them to his 401(k) plan. The lump sum bonus and pay increase probably will be spent soon.

"I'm driving a 1985 Saab with 275,000 miles on it. We're seriously thinking about getting a new used car," he said.

Bailey is pleased that his income is more closely tied to the company's performance. In lean years, his earnings will be on par with industry standards. But in good years, his pay will soar.

"The frosting on the cake [will be] just a little thicker," he said.