- Sep 17, 2005
- 88
- 0
Found the following article interesting....realizing of course new hires in PHX and RNO still hired in at $7.65 p/hr...hmmmm...
By Richard Craver JOURNAL REPORTER A renewed focus on domestic customer service is prompting US Airways Group Inc. to bolster the work force at its Winston-Salem reservations center.
The airline has hired 48 employees for its Hanes Mall Boulevard center, Vonda Hardy, the president of Communications Workers of America Local 3640, said yesterday. There are plans to add at least 100 more "as soon as possible," Hardy said.
US Airways has 591 employees at the center, including 525 reservation representatives, according to Philip Gee, a spokesman for the airline.
"What I understand is that the reservations center has been told to hire and to keep hiring until they're told to stop," Hardy said. "We started two three-week classes for new trainees on Monday for another 48." Gee said that the company is planning more training classes for late February.
Hardy said that the hiring strategy is recognition by US Airways' new management that the outsourcing of domestic-reservation calls wasn't working as efficiently as expected. Gee said that US Airways did not have a comment on how the airline is handling domestic production.
The airline will conduct a job fair at the Winston-Salem Urban League from 9 a.m. to noon next Wednesday. All applicants must submit a resume to Urban League officials by Friday at the group's office at 201 W. Fifth St. or e-mail one to [email protected] to participate in the job fair. For more information, call 725-5614.
America West Holdings Corp., based in Tempe, Ariz., completed the purchase of US Airways on Sept. 27 after US Airways emerged for the second time from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The airline kept the US Airways brand.
The previous US Airways management closed the Pittsburgh reservations center in September 2005 to consolidate domestic reservations in Winston-Salem. The airline also transferred some domestic calls to centers in San Salvador, El Salvador, Mexico City and the Philippines.
"We're getting some of the jobs back because the outsourcing wasn't working in some areas because of the language barrier," Hardy said. "Some reservation calls were taking up to 40 minutes longer than they needed to be."
Many new hires are likely to work second shift, along with weekends and holidays. The starting salary will be $8.72 an hour, according to Hardy and Urban League officials. US Airways paid a starting salary of $9.52 an hour for reservations representatives before being bought by America West. Adding local jobs also represents a sharp reversal from US Airways' recent personnel strategy, which had cut the work force at its reservations and Dividend Miles centers from 1,600 in August 2004 to 468 in October 2005. The airline is consolidating its consumer-affairs division and revenue-accounting operations in Tempe by spring.
The previous management offered early-out packages to local reservation employees and 324 accepted, Hardy said. Another 40 local reservations employees retired. "I don't think the company was ready for that many people to take the early-out package," Hardy said.
Steve Jones, the director of the Urban League's employment division, said he didn't know whether the airline's recent personnel moves will affect its hiring plan. "I know that many people are attracted by the benefits package that include free flights," he said. Hardy said that new management has taken away "some of the uneasiness about the status of the company."
US Airways is not the only airline reducing the number of domestic calls being transferred offshore, said Dean Headley, an aviation analyst at Wichita State University in Wichita, Kan.
"It's likely that the America West management has gotten a better feel for the holes in the merged company, and one of them is how it handles domestic reservations," Headley said. "They might have determined that whatever cost savings they're getting are being lost in customer dissatisfaction."
The airline is eligible for up to $100,000 a year in incentives for three years from the city of Winston-Salem, according to Derwick Paige, the assistant city manager for economic development. He said that US Airways could receive $88.24 for each retained job and $83.34 for each transferred job in September.
"The incentive deal does not address new positions, and the airline hasn't approached us to request incentives for new hires," Paige said.
Forsyth County commissioners made a similar three-year offer to the airline last February. Ed Jones, a deputy county manager, said he hasn't heard from the airline about the county's offer.
Posted By admin on 2006-02-01 06:56:45.0 | General Announcements
Reads: 76 |
© Copyright 2005, Aviation Job News
By Richard Craver JOURNAL REPORTER A renewed focus on domestic customer service is prompting US Airways Group Inc. to bolster the work force at its Winston-Salem reservations center.
The airline has hired 48 employees for its Hanes Mall Boulevard center, Vonda Hardy, the president of Communications Workers of America Local 3640, said yesterday. There are plans to add at least 100 more "as soon as possible," Hardy said.
US Airways has 591 employees at the center, including 525 reservation representatives, according to Philip Gee, a spokesman for the airline.
"What I understand is that the reservations center has been told to hire and to keep hiring until they're told to stop," Hardy said. "We started two three-week classes for new trainees on Monday for another 48." Gee said that the company is planning more training classes for late February.
Hardy said that the hiring strategy is recognition by US Airways' new management that the outsourcing of domestic-reservation calls wasn't working as efficiently as expected. Gee said that US Airways did not have a comment on how the airline is handling domestic production.
The airline will conduct a job fair at the Winston-Salem Urban League from 9 a.m. to noon next Wednesday. All applicants must submit a resume to Urban League officials by Friday at the group's office at 201 W. Fifth St. or e-mail one to [email protected] to participate in the job fair. For more information, call 725-5614.
America West Holdings Corp., based in Tempe, Ariz., completed the purchase of US Airways on Sept. 27 after US Airways emerged for the second time from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The airline kept the US Airways brand.
The previous US Airways management closed the Pittsburgh reservations center in September 2005 to consolidate domestic reservations in Winston-Salem. The airline also transferred some domestic calls to centers in San Salvador, El Salvador, Mexico City and the Philippines.
"We're getting some of the jobs back because the outsourcing wasn't working in some areas because of the language barrier," Hardy said. "Some reservation calls were taking up to 40 minutes longer than they needed to be."
Many new hires are likely to work second shift, along with weekends and holidays. The starting salary will be $8.72 an hour, according to Hardy and Urban League officials. US Airways paid a starting salary of $9.52 an hour for reservations representatives before being bought by America West. Adding local jobs also represents a sharp reversal from US Airways' recent personnel strategy, which had cut the work force at its reservations and Dividend Miles centers from 1,600 in August 2004 to 468 in October 2005. The airline is consolidating its consumer-affairs division and revenue-accounting operations in Tempe by spring.
The previous management offered early-out packages to local reservation employees and 324 accepted, Hardy said. Another 40 local reservations employees retired. "I don't think the company was ready for that many people to take the early-out package," Hardy said.
Steve Jones, the director of the Urban League's employment division, said he didn't know whether the airline's recent personnel moves will affect its hiring plan. "I know that many people are attracted by the benefits package that include free flights," he said. Hardy said that new management has taken away "some of the uneasiness about the status of the company."
US Airways is not the only airline reducing the number of domestic calls being transferred offshore, said Dean Headley, an aviation analyst at Wichita State University in Wichita, Kan.
"It's likely that the America West management has gotten a better feel for the holes in the merged company, and one of them is how it handles domestic reservations," Headley said. "They might have determined that whatever cost savings they're getting are being lost in customer dissatisfaction."
The airline is eligible for up to $100,000 a year in incentives for three years from the city of Winston-Salem, according to Derwick Paige, the assistant city manager for economic development. He said that US Airways could receive $88.24 for each retained job and $83.34 for each transferred job in September.
"The incentive deal does not address new positions, and the airline hasn't approached us to request incentives for new hires," Paige said.
Forsyth County commissioners made a similar three-year offer to the airline last February. Ed Jones, a deputy county manager, said he hasn't heard from the airline about the county's offer.
Posted By admin on 2006-02-01 06:56:45.0 | General Announcements
Reads: 76 |
© Copyright 2005, Aviation Job News
