jimcfs
Veteran
This must be big news if the real small town local news here in BLF ran the "no more pretzels" story last night on the 11PM news.
Consistency Is Key
- Thread starter USA320Pilot
- Start date
Travelpro72
Veteran
- Jan 30, 2005
- 4,964
- 455
I find it amazing that with all we as employees have gone through, the removal of pretzels makes headline news. While I agree that it is petty, we have had our contracts busted beyond belief. THIS is important? You keep reading that the LCC's offer a superior product compared to the legacy carriers over and over in various articles. I as a flight attendant do not like to be put in the position of appologizing for the acts of my management but find myself there everyday on every flight. With what passengers are paying for airfare and the price of fuel I find it hard to really give a darn if a pax gets pretzels. If a family or business traveler is surfing for the lowest fare I again find it hard to believe that if US and another carrier have the same fare they will pick the one with a half ounce bag of rock hard pretzels. It makes you wonder though, who's pocket is this one million dollars going into? We as flight attendants, the few I choose to fly with anyway, miss the days of service now gone. We joke about them installing vending machines in the back galley. Probably not far from the truth. All in all I don't think this is THAT big of a deal. I just hope I don't get my hand chewed off by a hungry pax when I set the drink down on the "No Brainer" napkin. LOL
People don't pay for service anymore, but competitors are still offering it and we're not.
US will lose more in bad marketing than the 1 miilion they will save. It's already embarrassing enough to work there most of the time... why put your name out there for endless Jay Leno jokes, newspaper cartoons, catty newspaper headlines, and even more lowered employee morale?
I think the F/As should hand out comment cards in place of the pretzels. There are three per Attache, as long as we still have Attache, that is.
US will lose more in bad marketing than the 1 miilion they will save. It's already embarrassing enough to work there most of the time... why put your name out there for endless Jay Leno jokes, newspaper cartoons, catty newspaper headlines, and even more lowered employee morale?
I think the F/As should hand out comment cards in place of the pretzels. There are three per Attache, as long as we still have Attache, that is.
Travelpro72
Veteran
- Jan 30, 2005
- 4,964
- 455
I think there are more things to worry about here at good old US. Besides worrying about a pax being ticked over pretzels WE should worry about cuts in: Gates, Aircraft, Slots, Cities, Pensions and Employees to just name a few. Although some LCC's are viewed as a premium service over US we have the lower fare alot of the time in a shared market. If it comes between CCY wanting more $$ from me or the removal of pretzels although tacky, thats what it's gonna be. When a consumer shopping for a ticket chooses US over another carrier be it a LCC or Legacy because our fare is lower in that market, they are not choosing us for gourmet pretzels. Again, while I think this is insane, it is reality. The comment card idea is a great one. I refer passengers to it often.
I agree that there are much more serious issues to worry about, but the whole pretzel thing is symbolic of the idiotic thought process at CCY.
Save a million, lose millions in business......
Here's a thought. Keep the pretzels, forget the bonuses--there I just saved US $20 million........
As said above, what's worse about the whole pretzel nonsense is that it's being picked up by the press, and it's making US look bad....
I have been saying this all along but they don't get it----PERCEPTION IS REALITY....and now US is the symbol of CHEAP in the airline business.
Why not add an hour of flying time to the fleet and reduce CASM a bit?
Why not progam some added schedule efficiencies? Why not make sure staffing is enough to get the job done? Between all the PAWOB costs and pissed off customers whose business has been lost forever, I am sure it cost more than the savings from the jobs they eliminated......
And before you naysayers chime in, it ain't about the pretzels--they are just symbolic of the real problem--clueless management.
I can't wait for Tempe to take over....
My best to you all....
Save a million, lose millions in business......
Here's a thought. Keep the pretzels, forget the bonuses--there I just saved US $20 million........
As said above, what's worse about the whole pretzel nonsense is that it's being picked up by the press, and it's making US look bad....
I have been saying this all along but they don't get it----PERCEPTION IS REALITY....and now US is the symbol of CHEAP in the airline business.
Why not add an hour of flying time to the fleet and reduce CASM a bit?
Why not progam some added schedule efficiencies? Why not make sure staffing is enough to get the job done? Between all the PAWOB costs and pissed off customers whose business has been lost forever, I am sure it cost more than the savings from the jobs they eliminated......
And before you naysayers chime in, it ain't about the pretzels--they are just symbolic of the real problem--clueless management.
I can't wait for Tempe to take over....
My best to you all....
Art at ISP said:
I couldn't agree more. While there's certainly a good deal of truth to the idea that passengers just want cheap fares and don't care about things like pretzels (just more of the "Wal-Mart-ization" of America), this bunch of idiots in CCY seem hellbent on doing as much as possible to ruin this company and give it even more bad press.
The fact that any of them are paid a salary is scandalous. The fact that most of them will receive bonuses for their stupidity is downright criminal.
Two possible reasons for these kinds of things; one already mentioned - to make sure when the golden parachutes opens, plenty of $$$$ falls out.
The other? To hand HP a s#$t sandwich, so if US augers in, the CCY crowd will say, "see, NO ONE could fix US."
My fondest dream is for Parker to make U go.
Then, WE can say, "see, I told you U's problem was CCY."
The other? To hand HP a s#$t sandwich, so if US augers in, the CCY crowd will say, "see, NO ONE could fix US."
My fondest dream is for Parker to make U go.
Then, WE can say, "see, I told you U's problem was CCY."
Art at ISP said:Here's a thought. Keep the pretzels, forget the bonuses--
SKY HIGH states: KEEP THE PRETZELS
.....AND GET RID OF THOSE NASTY PILLOWS.
EyeInTheSky
Veteran
Save one million from axing the pretzels and gain 10 million in bad publicity. DUH! The deadbeat just keeps living on at CCY. I implore the folks in Tempe to take a long hard look at the track record in CCY. Most should be handed walking papers. Yes, there are a few good men and women worth keeping but that percentage is in the lower single digit range.
you guys have no idea what is on the block and/or chopping blocks right now. All I can say is it will be a roller coaster transition and the usual b*&tching by the usual crowd, but in the end, things will very happy for the loyal employees and customers a like.....nuff said for now....
Dog Wonder
Veteran
jimcfs
Veteran
The following is stolen from a post on internet newsgroups...
Thread was about no more pretzels...
More ideas of how to turn this financial crisis around:
Pretzel pecuionerous, and other pertinent peconomy peasures:
10. Mini-vending machines behind each seat (NO CHANGE).
9. One one-ply sheet of toilet paper per customer, another if ya
insist--the chairman of the board will make the ultimate arbitrary
decision about each situation.
8. Overhead baggage restricted for 1960s Royal typewriters only.
7. Stewardesses whom have managed to graduate from the elite Univ of
Alabama Majorette School to be required to modify weighty beehive
hairdos & take them heavy rubber things off of their batons ends.
6. Articulate captains to do travelogues, weather reports & apologies
for causing air sickness disc jockey gigs for weddings, bar mitzvahs
and funerals, and share the lucrative moonlighting proceeds with
airline.
5. Major league bagage-throwing competition (in rain) events for new
cable channel, sponsored by the Samsonite genuine vinyl line "copied en
chine."
4. Airport parking companies and airlines to secretly conspire to delay
each landing at least 5 minutes (3 hour maximum delay limit, please)
per flight in order to duly increase parking revenues.
3. Semi-porno MAXIM & FHA magazines from news-stands to be leased at 25
cents per minute for captains while beering &/or liquoring it up for
up-coming red-eyes.
2. Souvenir (fake surplus) "fasten seat belt signs" & "no smoking"
signs (fabrique en chine) sold for conversation pieces in dorms,
offices & basements as avant garde, chic-chic items.
1. Grab all sweepstakes entry magazine coupons from IN-FLIGHT MAGAZINE
prior to sticking 'em behind the seats next to the vomit bags, because
ya never know, some airline could win the sweepstakes & survive.
Thread was about no more pretzels...
More ideas of how to turn this financial crisis around:
Pretzel pecuionerous, and other pertinent peconomy peasures:
10. Mini-vending machines behind each seat (NO CHANGE).
9. One one-ply sheet of toilet paper per customer, another if ya
insist--the chairman of the board will make the ultimate arbitrary
decision about each situation.
8. Overhead baggage restricted for 1960s Royal typewriters only.
7. Stewardesses whom have managed to graduate from the elite Univ of
Alabama Majorette School to be required to modify weighty beehive
hairdos & take them heavy rubber things off of their batons ends.
6. Articulate captains to do travelogues, weather reports & apologies
for causing air sickness disc jockey gigs for weddings, bar mitzvahs
and funerals, and share the lucrative moonlighting proceeds with
airline.
5. Major league bagage-throwing competition (in rain) events for new
cable channel, sponsored by the Samsonite genuine vinyl line "copied en
chine."
4. Airport parking companies and airlines to secretly conspire to delay
each landing at least 5 minutes (3 hour maximum delay limit, please)
per flight in order to duly increase parking revenues.
3. Semi-porno MAXIM & FHA magazines from news-stands to be leased at 25
cents per minute for captains while beering &/or liquoring it up for
up-coming red-eyes.
2. Souvenir (fake surplus) "fasten seat belt signs" & "no smoking"
signs (fabrique en chine) sold for conversation pieces in dorms,
offices & basements as avant garde, chic-chic items.
1. Grab all sweepstakes entry magazine coupons from IN-FLIGHT MAGAZINE
prior to sticking 'em behind the seats next to the vomit bags, because
ya never know, some airline could win the sweepstakes & survive.
