Pay Cuts To 9.00 Or 10.00 An Hr?

[robbedagain]

heard rumors all over today that it is posible that the inside agent may be all but not sure would have paycuts down to 9.00 or 10. an hr but i am not sure this would sit to well with anyone? if that is the case then you are better off working at walmart. may be mgmt should take their own pay checks down to 7.50 an hr or less!! as far as im concerned it is over and i refuse to give more

 

[Seatacus]

It won't happen. Someone is either pulling your leg or trying to get everyone riled up. Check your sources.

 

[robbedagain]

i'm a memeber of the iam but from what the pss was told bya higher cwa member in another station that attended some meeting was this is what the crumy mgmt of us want from either the cwa and/or the iam

 

[wings396]

Well there Bob, toss in what NW starts at...$12....then let's get SW in there, which is in the $9 range and we all know where it tops out. Using Spirit is a poor example to compare us to. I spoke to the soda delivery guy the other day and they start out at $12. It is very obvious that you have never worked for an airline even though you travel a lot. If you could only see what type of employee you get for those crap wages, you would change your tune in a hurry. Do you want some putz deicing your A/C after a rough night on the town? I have seen the revolving door that is created with LOW Wages, and it is a sad sight.

 

[tadjr]

Even the people that got laid off from US and went to work at B6 started out at 10.00 an hour. You might be able to pay Spirit or Airtran wages and get some NEW people to hire on there, but even looking at their ticket counters I dont see more than 2 or 3 people who have been there more than a year or two. Wonder what their turnover/training rate is there. Must cost quite a bit for checks and training each time someone quits, not to mention not having a seasoned staff in place at all times, just in case that would matter to a CHPR?

 

[Robc98]

Well Im familiar with the rumor posted above....basically the company has stated they were seeking possibly another 20-25pct wage reduction from the employees.....among other cuts too numerous to mention......being a mainline/express agent who tops out at 13.01 hr a 25pct reduction to that payscale will lower wages to 10.00......so if you believe that the company is going to go after the express people and hit us hard again then your right....the door is closed .....noone with any experience or time with this company will stick around to be blasted to such a level.....say goodbye to whatever cust svc is left with this company because there are a lot of jobs around paying 10.00 hr without the responsibility that an airline job brings.......but as a board member for the CWA there has been no negotiations taking place with the company and Im hoping the higher ups with the CWA are prepared for a good fight because I feel the agents will not stand for much more BS ......just my opinion.......

 

[wings396]

You are correct, they will get what the hoped for. And you can flush C/S down the toilet with those wages. I can already see the difference in the new hires that started with Express. Most are just there to take advantage of flight benefits, and after they get sick of them, off they will go. Not too many sweat losing an $8 an hour job as they can be found almost anywhere else with less hassles. Before an Airling job was a career, now it is just a stepping stone until something better comes along. Take my word that Customer Service will become a thing of the past.
I know those folks at Walmart and BK bend over backwards for me when I walk thru the door.....

 

[Kev3188]

Bob--

You DO get what you pay for. While I understand the business 101 lesson you're trying to show here, as someone who is always speaking of wanting good customer svc., it's suprising to me that you would take the stance you are. All that great svc. you get from U agents helping get you around during irregular ops.? Do you think someone making $7.50/hr. is really going to care? Will they have even been around long enough to know how to do it? Keep in mind the fact that aviation workers also work all shifts, all days, in all kinds of weather as well holidays, kid's B-days, etc.... I fear you may be right about Legacy carriers aspiring only to middling service; until the LCC's cost rise up to meet ours, it's the biggest premium we have left.

 

[matika]

You are correct, they will get what the hoped for. And you can flush C/S down the toilet with those wages. I can already see the difference in the new hires that started with Express. Most are just there to take advantage of flight benefits, and after they get sick of them, off they will go. Not too many sweat losing an $8 an hour job as they can be found almost anywhere else with less hassles. Before an Airling job was a career, now it is just a stepping stone until something better comes along. Take my word that Customer Service will become a thing of the past.
I know those folks at Walmart and BK bend over backwards for me when I walk thru the door.....

Actually at PSA CSAs start out at $6.77/hr no benefits... and that's only at the hub... (PIT)

And you're right, I'd say the majority of us probably couldn't care less... (and I'll edit to add that for some reason I'm one who actually loves her job, though God only knows why sometimes...and I happen to be a college-educated punk )

 

[Reservation Agent]

I don't think it would happen...Northwest Airlines starts agents at close to $12.00 an hour to begin....I think the company would have to go out of business...

It would never pass a vote...Reps have already make less about $1.50 an hour less than Southwest pays for their top agents...(And I believe U starting wage already is about $9.00 for brand new agents...)Plus agents also have gone from 10 paid holidays down to 8 paid holidays,,..and only get paid 75% of a your week's pay on vacation,.... when your bills come in at 100%.....CWA Gate, Reservation Reps don't have a pension...............CWA reps work a 40 hr work week, while pilots/ flight attendants work a much shorter work week, at higher wages....

If they were smart they would offer early out packages...especially since CWA agents don't get a pension anyway......That's why there are agents who have been with the company for 30 years, because they can't afford to retire since we gave up our pensions to help the company...If there was some sort of early out package, they could hire new agents at the bottom pay , which would be about $9.00 an hr...

Travel benefits aren't what they used to be either, since USAIRWAYS is giving up on full sized planes, and going to smaller 50-70 pax jets....More difficult to non-rev anymore...

I think we are down to the bone now with CWA....

If continuing threats are to sell off the airline, I think they better go ahead and get it over with......

 

[mweiss]

Ultimately, you can choose to compare apples to oranges and say that the oranges are cheaper, but oranges will make a really bad apple pie.

What I'm trying to say here is that it's all well and good to talk about how mechanics' wages will go down to $9/hr, but there have been tons of studies that prove what has been alluded to here, that the quality of employee tends to go down. Within a certain wage range, the quality difference might not be significant, but beyond some point (where that is isn't clear) the real costs go up.

For example, if you pay $10 instead of $15, but the work takes twice as long to do by a $10 employee than a $15 employee, you're no longer saving money. Instead, your mx labor costs just went up by 30%. Of course, if you're talking about work that isn't done correctly at $10, things get worse in dozens of ways.

Contrary to what some on this board might believe, I'm not a proponent of indiscriminate wage reductions.

 

[Colby]

heard rumors all over today that it is posible that the inside agent may be all but not sure would have paycuts down to 9.00 or 10. an hr but i am not sure this would sit to well with anyone? if that is the case then you are better off working at walmart. may be mgmt should take their own pay checks down to 7.50 an hr or less!! as far as im concerned it is over and i refuse to give more

Can Someone put this in English....


Are you saying that Agents are going to be put to 9.00-10.00 per hour on the job.... See... U employees really need to Specify what is going ON!!!

 

[mga707]

Can Someone put this in English....

...and Throw in Some random Capitalization... B)

 

[MarkMyWords]

First off, Robbed, stop spreading unsubstantiated rumors. You seem to have this huge chip on your shoulder about the choices that YOU made. You had the opportunity to remain a ML employee and you CHOSE to work for mainline/express. Coming on here and spreading FUD does no one any good.

Second. When I hear people talk about "you get what you pay for" and the wages paid to entry level employees, I take offense. Each and every one of us started with this airline making peanuts. Are you saying that you cared less about the comany when you were making 6.00 an hour versus when you go to the top of the scale? With each pay raise did you start caring more? Work experience levels are one thing, but care and compassion are something else. When I was making 6.50 to start I was just as proud (if not more) then I am now.

 

[youngblood]

Piney,

Please let's put things into perspective. WN aegnts make more than we do. Spirit stinks and is a baby compared to US. Jetblue hasn't had the pleasure of experiencing senior employees.

What makes me worth the $11.58/hr. I get? (Yes, $11.58!!!!!!!) I can change a ticket. Protect you on OA if necessary while telling some how to do it. I know what numbers to call at an airport to find your lost bag. I have ways to find out things on a flight that you can only dream of AND I UTILIZE IT!!!!!!!!!! I have loads of information at my fingertips and use it. I read the impossible fare rules and understand them to get you the lowest possible fare. I know right off the bat that you can't request oxygen on express, book an UMNR on the last connecting flight, the weight and dimensions of bags allowed before excess fees, recommended check in times, how to walk an idiot through web check in, how to read a map of an airport i have never been in, give you the percentage of on time arrivals for flights, look indiscriminately for the last DM seat, among MANY, MANY, MANY other things. Just to name a few above and beyond circumstances. I have spent an hour and a half on the phone with agents at the PHL airport looking for an UMNR that didn't have the requested service. I have spent an hour consoling a grandfather who lost his grandson. I have spent 30 minutes assuring a mother (who lost her daughter on one of the planes that flew into the WTC) that her son would be fine during inclement weather. And just recently I spent 45 minutes on a call with a wife who's deaf husband was mistreated on a flight from CLT to EWR. All circumstances required either compassion or a true understanding of what the airline industry is all about. And I do this for less than $12/hr. Would the stress and emotional turmoil be worth it for $7/ hr? Hell no!!!!!!!!!! And believe me when I say emotional turmoil. I have tolerated some of the most inhumane wishes and remarks of some people while I have shed tears after work for some of the passengers I book. My husband gets tired of hearing "the stories". And sometimes I get tired of dreaming of them.