Interesting Jobs On Skynet

[The Gopher]

I have noticed an increase in certain types of jobs on Skynet. Based on that, these are my guesses:

• UA wants a new onboard product, especially entertainment. There were/are THREE separate manager's jobs open for onboard product procurement and purchasing. I hate to see us getting out the Visa card after bankruptcy, but we can't ignore that F9 and B6 have live TV onboard. In addition to wifi (already announced), maybe satellite TV and/or radio?

• Lots of attention being given to the training of the new 2006 flight attendant classes. I think this group will be thought of as the "new way" that UA provides good onboard service. The DIR ratings are cramping our style, and the largest driver of that is service.

• What was with the casting call for all sorts of ORDCG and ORDCS jobs, supervisors and higher a few weeks ago? Was there a culling of the herd or attrition? Also there are a few LAXCG/CS spots open now as well... related?

Ah well, all guesses and I could be completely wrong. But I look at the open jobs more than I do Newsreal or press releases.

 

[UALDC767]

I have noticed an increase in certain types of jobs on Skynet. Based on that, these are my guesses:

• UA wants a new onboard product, especially entertainment. There were/are THREE separate manager's jobs open for onboard product procurement and purchasing. I hate to see us getting out the Visa card after bankruptcy, but we can't ignore that F9 and B6 have live TV onboard. In addition to wifi (already announced), maybe satellite TV and/or radio?

• Lots of attention being given to the training of the new 2006 flight attendant classes. I think this group will be thought of as the "new way" that UA provides good onboard service. The DIR ratings are cramping our style, and the largest driver of that is service.

• What was with the casting call for all sorts of ORDCG and ORDCS jobs, supervisors and higher a few weeks ago? Was there a culling of the herd or attrition? Also there are a few LAXCG/CS spots open now as well... related?

Ah well, all guesses and I could be completely wrong. But I look at the open jobs more than I do Newsreal or press releases.

[post="308822"][/post]​

My thoughts....

1. We are also weak in the onboard services/offerings for international flights compared to our competitors. Especially the Asian airlines. I have heard that UAL is looking to improve/upgrade the international cabin experience. personally I dont see us getting Live TV. Too many airplanes in the domestic fleet that don't have personal seat viewers....Would be very costly to retrofit the entire narrowbody fleet (737/320/757 - roughly 320+ aircraft!) The satellite radio though could be a option.

2. Can't really comment on the new hires other than it certainly will be cheaper for the company since so many senior F/a's are resigning/ not returning form the furlough.

3. UAL in ORD took over all the Express operations recently. Ramp/CS etc....so that might have something to do with it.

DC

 

[OutInLeftField]

Be careful not to read too much into these sorts of things. You must remember that UA is a company STILL in bankruptcy and not exactly pointed down the road of sustained profitability. UA is still experiencing lots of attrition each month. Keep in mind that there is not much financial incentive for folks to stay these days. Raises are not in the cards for a long time, especially for non-union employees. So lots of people are still heading for the exits.

In regards to your mention of jobs at ORDCG and ORDCS, this can probably be explained through a combination of heavy turnover, as well the completion of transition of UAX ground handling from Air Wisconsin over to mainline United. The transition did not go particularly well this summer. Lots more workers are needed and I think that's how you can explain that.

I'd agree with you that some of these jobs foreshadow future intentions of the company, especially in the area of onboard product planning. For UA to do marketplace justice to all the turnaround efforts that have been completed thus far in bankruptcy, the company simply MUST remain competitive with its onboard product offerings. While I'll admit, the idea of Live TV is great, bringing it to United raises questions. Why? Because UA is an airline made of many different niche markets. You have the PS offering between JFK/LAX and JFK/SFO. You have the Business One offering. You have your TED offering. You have regular mainline service, especially in international markets. You have regular UAX. You have the new Ex Plus offering. So you have to be careful there so that you don't undermine the marketing message for any of those branded products and markets. For instance, if you put Live TV on only some of those offerings, you run the risk of confusing or angering your customer base because they don't understand why they can get it on one flight and not the other. So then if you decide to put Live TV on ALL UA or all UA/UAX flights, you're talking about a BIG expense. Could it be done in select markets, like PS and Ted? Sure. But it is a heavy cost item. And there needs to be a return on that investment that makes the expense worthwhile.

More possible is the fact that you could see UA make a run at an aircraft purchase. Why? Well, it's no secret that UA wants to continue to grow internationally. Unfortunately, we're at the point where that is almost impossible because there aren't any more available widebody international aircraft. Maybe enough to tweak here and there, but not for any meaningful expansion. So that means more aircraft would be needed to fund that planned growth for the future. I'm sure the company would also love to start phasing out more and more of the B737's. While they're a workhorse, they're getting long in the tooth. Many need an overhaul and upgrading of the interior cabin. So these jobs could foreshadow that kind of activity down the road.

But the point is that you should try not to read too much into job openings that the company advertises.

 

[spacewaitress]

2. Can't really comment on the new hires other than it certainly will be cheaper for the company since so many senior F/a's are resigning/ not returning form the furlough.

[post="309055"][/post]​

I can...it's the junior ones that aren't coming back. The return % is much higher with the senior furloughees coming back in Oct and Nov than the previous junior recalls.