Painful Departure

[700UW]

By Steve Halvonik
Sunday, May 9, 2004

At first blush, US Airways' indication last week that it would shrink its presence at Pittsburgh International Airport seemed to be another devastating setback to a region that has never gotten over the collapse of Big Steel two decades ago.
The airline's cutbacks are indeed a blow to the region's economy: They will inflict financial pain on hundreds of Western Pennsylvania families, from flight attendants to mom-and-pop stores in the western suburbs that serve airline employees.

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/dailycouri...s/s_193302.html

 

[GeezLouis]

Frank Schifano, president of Local 1976 of the International Association of Machinists, said Friday that he anticipated no job eliminations for his machinists as a result of US Airways' plan to convert its operations at Pittsburgh International Airport from hub to "focus" status

Schifano is an idiot if he really believes this! When the Boeings are gone, Pittsburgh will be gone! Write it down!!! 😉

 

[700UW]

Schifano is an idiot if he really believes this! When the Boeings are gone, Pittsburgh will be gone! Write it down!!! 😉

Where do you think the Airbus will get done?

The IAM will prevail.

 

[Rage4Order]

I wonder if all the aviation experts/analysts will tell me how it's not really a big problem that I lost my job. A job that I happened to like, and at a place I liked to work at.

People can talk and talk and talk all they want about how USAir being almost nothing in PIT isn't a big problem, and getting LCCs in here is going to make things better and all that.

But when you're out of a job, as I already am, you don't want to hear all their psuedo-optimism.

Onorato thinks everything will be fine and dandy, when all the LCCs come flooding into PIT. When a very few actually do, and they hire a few dozen empolyees at sub-poverty wages, that won't help the other 9,000 who are out of work.

As for Roddey, it's funny how before the election, he had "Project Roam", a new LCC to be based in PIT, that will employ thousands. He lost the election, then what a coincidence, Project Roam's stat-up will be delayed. We haven't heard a word about it since.

So to all the experts, when you're laid off from a job that you liked, and the alternatives aren't too promising, tell me how much you like it.

 

[GeezLouis]

Where do you think the Airbus will get done?

I'm not so sure the Airbii will be done by US! I hope I'm wrong, but I never believed this dispute would have went this far!

 

[700UW]

Ofcourse it would go this far, this so called management has no honor and their word means nothing.

 

[to much time to quit]

Where do you think the Airbus will get done?

The IAM will prevail.

Hopefully, CLT!! We have lost over 800 mechanics to layoffs since 2001.
Seven more of my coworkers (mechanics) just left the building this weekend to layoffs. 🙁 But thats OK since my union brothers will pick up the slack by working OVERTIME!! :angry: My phone rang over 5 times this weekend to work overtime, but I can't stoop that low to take it. How these people can accept overtime and then run into a laidoff coworker on the street and look them in the eye and ask how are things going is PATHETIC. :angry: :angry: :angry: The company will continue to screw us and then the workers screw each other. I am embaressed to have ever met many of my coworkers who are so GREEDY. When my number comes up, and one day it will, It will be a relief not to look at some of these people. You know who you are. For the rest, which is also many I will never forget you guys. You've stuck together till the end.

 

[Winglet]

Don't feel too bad. After the pilot's union at AA took 23% paycuts and Carty booted about 1500 pilots onto the street, a lot of senior guys started flying max overtime trying to make up their loss in pay. Happens everytime. Union solidarity is a bunch of hogwash. The senior managers know this and and also know that paying a few people to work overtime is much more cost effective than hiring enough people to do the work in the first place. And what's really pathetic, is the pilots don't even get more than the standard hourly wage.

 

[SpinDoc]

Schifano is an idiot if he really believes this! When the Boeings are gone, Pittsburgh will be gone! Write it down!!! 😉

Speaking of the Boeings, US made a huge error
last year in ordering Airbus A330-200's rather
than Boeing 757-200 and 300 series aircraft.
The B757 has better economics and is built
much better than the A330-200. Besides, there
even though Boeing has decided to end
production on the B757, there are still plenty
of used models on the market that could be
purchased at a better cost than the Airbus.
CCY needs a new fleet planning department.
The B757 is the best plane US currently flies.

 

[RWerksman]

Speaking of the Boeings, US made a huge error
last year in ordering Airbus A330-200's rather
than Boeing 757-200 and 300 series aircraft.
The B757 has better economics and is built
much better than the A330-200. Besides, there
even though Boeing has decided to end
production on the B757, there are still plenty
of used models on the market that could be
purchased at a better cost than the Airbus.
CCY needs a new fleet planning department.
The B757 is the best plane US currently flies.

757-300 F8 to Europe.

Yay!

 

[geo1004]

Speaking of the Boeings, US made a huge error
last year in ordering Airbus A330-200's rather
than Boeing 757-200 and 300 series aircraft.

These aircraft are not even comparable. The A330-200's are seen as the replacement for the ageing 767-200 fleet and will (god willing) be used on European routes. The 757 is a narrowbody and far better suited for the domestic/Caribbean flying that is nicely served right now by US's A320 series (particularly the 321 for transcons). The 757 also doesn't have nearly the range or the cargo capacity of the A330-200.

 

[totobird]

700UW I appreciate your posts and thoughts but if you really think the company will not win the Airbus Arbitration just look at the past.

The company has won 2 concession packages from us.
The company has farmed out the commuter operation.
The company has farmed out mail and freight.
The company is in the process of replacing our gate agents with Kiosks.
Not to mention we lost the Teamsters back in the early 90's to a vote that should have never taken place.
I hope you are right and our mechanics stay but I seriously doubt that will happen given the past track record of this company.

 

[FM2436]

Speaking of the Boeings, US made a huge error
last year in ordering Airbus A330-200's rather
than Boeing 757-200 and 300 series aircraft.
The B757 has better economics and is built
much better than the A330-200. Besides, there
even though Boeing has decided to end
production on the B757, there are still plenty
of used models on the market that could be
purchased at a better cost than the Airbus.
CCY needs a new fleet planning department.
The B757 is the best plane US currently flies.

The 757 has been discontinued by Boeing. The last 757-300 rolled off the assembly line, I believe last week, and went to Continental. The 767 will likely follow after more 7E7 orders are placed.

 

[RowUnderDCA]

Schifano is an idiot if he really believes this! When the Boeings are gone, Pittsburgh will be gone! Write it down!!! 😉

To be fair, I think the quote says that there will be no IAM job losses in PIT due to the hub down sizing. I think that is correct. At least that's how I read it.

 

[4merresrat]

Back on the subject of painful departure from PIT, does this imply that PIT res will close?