Hiring Spree Brings New Blood to American Airlines

[BigMac]

Airline has hired more than 8,700 workers since 2015.
400 reservation agents will be added at DFW call center.
It's Americans largest hiring surge in over a decade.
http://www.star-telegram.com/news/business/article34214298.html

 

[WeAAsles]

Nice.

 

[jimntx]

I got an email yesterday that despite the huge amount of hiring of flight attendants that has been going on for the past 2 years (we still have 3 f/a classes for LAA and 2 f/a classes for LUS to be held this year), the company has announced that they intend to hire approx. 800 new flight attendants next year.  Evidently, there are major expansion plans afoot, or the company knows of a lot of retirements over the next year.

 

[NewHampshire Black Bears]

I got an email yesterday that despite the huge amount of hiring of flight attendants that has been going on for the past 2 years (we still have 3 f/a classes for LAA and 2 f/a classes for LUS to be held this year), the company has announced that they intend to hire approx. 800 new flight attendants next year.  Evidently, there are major expansion plans afoot, or the company knows of a lot of retirements over the next year.

 
C'mon Jim.  You KNOW you're going to HATE getting BUMPED up by approx.   " 1,000 " seniority numbers  !!!

 

[jimntx]

Hey, I'm already off reserve for over a year--At DFW!  When I started 15 years ago today (remember I was furloughed for 1.5 years after 9/11) and got DFW right out of training, there were DFW f/as with almost 25 years still serving reserve 3 months/year because DFW was such a senior base.  The class that graduated 2 weeks ahead of me in Aug. 2000 was the first class since 1992 to put new hires at DFW.
 
Oh, and forgot to mention, I'm holding my 6th choice line of flying this month.  The 1st through 5th lines I bid simply because of the number of hours of paid trip removal involved because I have 5 days of vacation this month.  And, the line I'm holding I get almost 40 hours of paid trip removal.   So, I'm not sure how much better it could get. 

 

[kirkpatrick]

Jim, I was off reserve from Sept 2013 until July.  Combining the bases was responsible for going back on.  However, I've been enjoying the Caribbean and Central American flying for the change.  I put in for the purser proffer so we'll see what happens.
 
MK

 

[jimntx]

My last reserve month was October, 2013.  I was worried that I would go back on reserve when the bases combined here in May.  I mean, IDF re-defined senior for our generation.  However, I was on the backup list for just last month, and the backup list for this month starts at a seniority number over 13000.  I'm right at 12000.  Thanksgiving and Christmas are yet to be seen.  I was considering the purser proffer, but I probably will retire in a year or so.  And since I don't mind flying the S80, I prefer #1, and I don't mind flying weekends, I can pretty much hold whatever I want as it is.  Good luck on the purser proffer.  I don't think I've ever met a former TW f/a who wouldn't make a good purser.

 

[jimntx]

I got an email yesterday that despite the huge amount of hiring of flight attendants that has been going on for the past 2 years (we still have 3 f/a classes for LAA and 2 f/a classes for LUS to be held this year), the company has announced that they intend to hire approx. 800 new flight attendants next year.  Evidently, there are major expansion plans afoot, or the company knows of a lot of retirements over the next year.

Forgot to mention that just about 2 months ago, the company announced that all newhire classes for the rest of 2015 had been postponed until early 2016.  Then they turned around last week and announced the 5 classes for the rest of this year.

 

[swamt]

Nice to see the airlines hiring again. Always good news to hear...

 

[Kev3188]

^This^

 

[Rogallo]

Nice to see the airlines hiring again. Always good news to hear...

 
Yes it is!   
 
Now, throw a retirement package out there!

 

[jimntx]

Retirement package?  Rogallo, I find that level of naivete in someone your age to be refreshing.    Let's face it, U.S. corporations for the most part have decided that with the exception of the executives, there will be no retirement plan.  The best you can hope for is a 401K with some company matching.  They're basically telling you that your retirement is your business, not theirs.  And, the level of comfort you want in retirement will be indicated by the amount you are willing to put into your 401K and not spend right now when you get your paycheck.
 
But then, that has always been true to some extent.  No retirement plan and no Social Security was ever intended to be your sole source of income in retirement.  And, for those people who have chosen to not save a dime toward their retirement while working will get the retirement they evidently wanted.  (I would say that they deserved, but that would probably start a firestorm of outrage among those that think a retirement plan should put them in green pastures forever even if it was a non-contributory plan.)

 

[Rogallo]

Sorry Jim, I used the wrong term! 
 
I meant an early out incentive package! 

 

[jimntx]

No need to apologize.  If it's any consolation, rumors are hot and heavy among the flight attendants that there will be another Early Out offering.  Don't know when, and kind of doubt it right now because the rumors include buyout amounts of $75,000 to $100,000.  Though those amounts could be amortized pretty quickly by replacing top of scale f/as making $55+/hr with newhires making about $20/hr, I don't see AA being that generous.  (Might take away from the executive bonuses, don't you know.)
 
Replacing a $55/hr f/a with a $20/hr f/a could amortize a $100,000 early out payment in approximately 4 years.  Would be less than that, but the new hire does get raises each year; so, for simplicity's sake, let's just go with 4 years.  And,  you would still have the services of the new hire at a lower rate for another 9 years before he/she reached top of scale at 13 years.  However, I think the company would rather spend the money on new shiny jets.

 

[Rogallo]

That would be great. A few young cuties might be nice to look at once again!