Giving away our product...
By Chris Fox, President CWA Local 13302
We have a surprisingly large number of people entitled to free space positive (generally first class), personal and vacation travel on our airline. The current number of people in this exclusive club is 721, including a whole gaggle of current and retired executives, executives of other airlines, members and former members of the Board of Directors, and "director level" US Airways management...and their children and family members! Many of these 721 people work for other corporations or airlines, yet they remain members of the US Airways "Old Boys Club", entitled to free premium seats for their personal travel - seats that could otherwise be sold and generating revenue.
How much does it cost us? – try $86,600 in one 6-day period...
It is not uncommon for paying customers to be denied boarding while these 721 occupy premium seats for personal travel. A recent example occurred when the free-riding president of another airline bumped two first class passengers from an oversold flight to Florida, or a similar situation involving three seats to Rome (Italy - not NY). In one recent 6-day period this group of 721 people grabbed $85,600 worth of free, space positive, personal travel for themselves – an amount equal to the annual salaries of 2 agents. How much longer can we afford to give away our product when others are willing to pay for it?
And are these people grateful for their free travel privileges? Here are some comments I’ve heard from employees who actually deal with these folks:
Mr. ________ is constantly rude and demanding with our agents over seat assignments.
Mr. ________ calls from the ___ tkt counter and asks our agent if they can tell the tkt counter agent how do their job.
Mr. _______ was disputing the fact that he should be paying taxes on a free international ticket.
Retired executive – currently employed by ________ corporation. Most likely uses space positive benefit to fly on business. Spouse is also still working. We must be the laughing stock of this successful family.
Mr. __________ - executive of ___________ airline. This person is, "Not to be removed in an oversale situation." We would much rather give out DBC's than inconvenience this important man.
Mr. _________ - executive of ____________ airline. Recent flight was overbooked – we were forced to seat his party of 2 in first class and deny boarding to revenue passengers because he wouldn't budge.
Here’s our proposal...
We should never give away seats, particularly premium seats, when customers are willing to pay. These 721 select individuals should not be flying free positive space for personal leisure travel, period. If they are entitled to personal travel privileges on US Airways (which is dubious for many of these people), then it should be on space available basis, just like the US Airways employees.
Goldman Sachs got it right...
Employees from all US Airways labor groups have suggested numerous revenue-generating and cost-cutting ideas to management. But, somehow, the only cost-cutting management seems to focus on is employee pay and benefit cost-cutting.
We agree with the Goldman Sachs analysts who say, "US Airways Management insists that every aspect of the company's operations is under review, but the non-labor cost problem is more complex and amorphous, and we have heard no clear strategy for limiting the non-labor gap."
By Chris Fox, President CWA Local 13302
We have a surprisingly large number of people entitled to free space positive (generally first class), personal and vacation travel on our airline. The current number of people in this exclusive club is 721, including a whole gaggle of current and retired executives, executives of other airlines, members and former members of the Board of Directors, and "director level" US Airways management...and their children and family members! Many of these 721 people work for other corporations or airlines, yet they remain members of the US Airways "Old Boys Club", entitled to free premium seats for their personal travel - seats that could otherwise be sold and generating revenue.
How much does it cost us? – try $86,600 in one 6-day period...
It is not uncommon for paying customers to be denied boarding while these 721 occupy premium seats for personal travel. A recent example occurred when the free-riding president of another airline bumped two first class passengers from an oversold flight to Florida, or a similar situation involving three seats to Rome (Italy - not NY). In one recent 6-day period this group of 721 people grabbed $85,600 worth of free, space positive, personal travel for themselves – an amount equal to the annual salaries of 2 agents. How much longer can we afford to give away our product when others are willing to pay for it?
And are these people grateful for their free travel privileges? Here are some comments I’ve heard from employees who actually deal with these folks:
Mr. ________ is constantly rude and demanding with our agents over seat assignments.
Mr. ________ calls from the ___ tkt counter and asks our agent if they can tell the tkt counter agent how do their job.
Mr. _______ was disputing the fact that he should be paying taxes on a free international ticket.
Retired executive – currently employed by ________ corporation. Most likely uses space positive benefit to fly on business. Spouse is also still working. We must be the laughing stock of this successful family.
Mr. __________ - executive of ___________ airline. This person is, "Not to be removed in an oversale situation." We would much rather give out DBC's than inconvenience this important man.
Mr. _________ - executive of ____________ airline. Recent flight was overbooked – we were forced to seat his party of 2 in first class and deny boarding to revenue passengers because he wouldn't budge.
Here’s our proposal...
We should never give away seats, particularly premium seats, when customers are willing to pay. These 721 select individuals should not be flying free positive space for personal leisure travel, period. If they are entitled to personal travel privileges on US Airways (which is dubious for many of these people), then it should be on space available basis, just like the US Airways employees.
Goldman Sachs got it right...
Employees from all US Airways labor groups have suggested numerous revenue-generating and cost-cutting ideas to management. But, somehow, the only cost-cutting management seems to focus on is employee pay and benefit cost-cutting.
We agree with the Goldman Sachs analysts who say, "US Airways Management insists that every aspect of the company's operations is under review, but the non-labor cost problem is more complex and amorphous, and we have heard no clear strategy for limiting the non-labor gap."
