- Nov 21, 2003
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From USA Today (Today)
United frontline workers to CEO: We 'are no longer behind you'
The chairman of United's pilots union demands in a letter Tuesday that United CEO Glen Tilton reopen contract negotiations with workers "with the goal of putting agreements in place for every union by Feb. 1, 2008," the Chicago Tribune (free registration) writes. That date would mark the second anniversary of United's exit from bankruptcy protection. The letter –- which The Associated Press describes as "scathing" -– was written by pilot Mark Bathurst, who also is on the company's board of directors. Bathurst claims in his letter to Tilton that United "lags behind its peers by most measures" and is "not in a good place."
"We are the only network carrier without a new aircraft order and, seemingly, without a vision for the future," Bathurst writes. Adding to the woes, he tells Tilton that labor relations that "are at their lowest point in years and getting worse." Bathurst's letter pulls few punches. He asks Tilton: "Why do American and Continental do a better job than United at managing revenue? Why do American's non-labor costs remain lower than ours? Why is Delta expanding its international reach every month, while we can't make our international operations work as well as others?"
The Tribune writes that the letter's "confrontational tone … isn't a complete surprise: This month about 400 United pilots, flight attendants and mechanics marched outside the site of the company's annual meeting, protesting what they say is a management team that is overpaid and out of touch with workers. At the meeting, one pilot pressed Tilton about what she said are morale problems and worker stress caused by his lean staffing strategy. She told Tilton that 'employees are no longer behind you,' " according to the Tribune.
Posted at 11:13 AM/ET, Jun 01, 2007 in United | Permalink
United frontline workers to CEO: We 'are no longer behind you'
The chairman of United's pilots union demands in a letter Tuesday that United CEO Glen Tilton reopen contract negotiations with workers "with the goal of putting agreements in place for every union by Feb. 1, 2008," the Chicago Tribune (free registration) writes. That date would mark the second anniversary of United's exit from bankruptcy protection. The letter –- which The Associated Press describes as "scathing" -– was written by pilot Mark Bathurst, who also is on the company's board of directors. Bathurst claims in his letter to Tilton that United "lags behind its peers by most measures" and is "not in a good place."
"We are the only network carrier without a new aircraft order and, seemingly, without a vision for the future," Bathurst writes. Adding to the woes, he tells Tilton that labor relations that "are at their lowest point in years and getting worse." Bathurst's letter pulls few punches. He asks Tilton: "Why do American and Continental do a better job than United at managing revenue? Why do American's non-labor costs remain lower than ours? Why is Delta expanding its international reach every month, while we can't make our international operations work as well as others?"
The Tribune writes that the letter's "confrontational tone … isn't a complete surprise: This month about 400 United pilots, flight attendants and mechanics marched outside the site of the company's annual meeting, protesting what they say is a management team that is overpaid and out of touch with workers. At the meeting, one pilot pressed Tilton about what she said are morale problems and worker stress caused by his lean staffing strategy. She told Tilton that 'employees are no longer behind you,' " according to the Tribune.
Posted at 11:13 AM/ET, Jun 01, 2007 in United | Permalink