I am a recent retiree (Jan 2006) having spent 20+years in PHL doing everything but "fueling, flying, and fixing" airplanes. I like to travel and have met many co-workers from many places as well as people working their way "in and out" of PHL. Everyone knows the "horror" stories....or they think they do........
There are three important things that I have said to every new manager with whom I worked (as well as many co-workers):
1) PHL works in spite of itself
2) There is NO easy fix......many have tried and failed miserably (and been either fired, promoted, or hired by another airline).
3) It is IMPOSSIBLE to compare PHL to any other station. Although everywhere has its own issues, many of PHL's issues are unique.
So, to begin to answer the question......
First, decent facilities. Terminals B-C are the oldest and most falling-apart in PHL. The gates there were designed for airplanes that held 50-60 passengers (Convair 580s etc) and are now required to accomodate 120-200. We operate from 4 terminals that are not adjoining. A passenger arriving at F-36 and departing from A-24 must travel a HUGE distance which is somewhat covered by a shuttle bus, but one heck of a long trip. (The bag-runners make this trip as well.) I can't think of any of our airports that are THAT difficult to navigate. On the employee side, our facilities are dirty and unhealthy. The bag chute is so full of fumes and the "warning system" hasn't worked for years. The bathrooms are filthy, many don't work, there is rarely paper towels, toilet paper, or even running water. Although the airport is supposedly smoke-free, people smoke constantly in the employee areas with no problems because many of the managers also smoke.....flight crews too. Is it any wonder that PHL has had a large number of cancer deaths in the last few years?
Second, decent equipment. The things we have don't work and the management doesn't seem to care. We also don't have enough equipment to properly do the job. On the ramp, agents are expected to drive tugs that have no headlights, windshields, wipers, defrosters, working brakes.....and that's if you can even find one because there are never enough in service. Agents are constantly stealing tugs from each other (and fighting over it). One can spend more than a half-hour just trying to find a tug or belt loader. Whereas many of the airports I have flown through seem to have plenty of equipment, we rarely ever got anything new......plenty of hand-me-downs from BWI, CLT or PIT. They now claim that they are spending millions on equipment.....none of my still-working friends have seen much of it. If an agent has to spend his/her time foraging for equipment...that doesn't work anyway, bags are not going to make their flights and customers are going to be unhappy.
Third, better management. In most corporations, managers are people with an education (MBA) and management training. At USAirways, managers are hired off the street with no experience needed. They come and go at the speed of a revolving door....and tend to hide when the "sh** hits the fan". Many of them are incapable of doing the jobs of the people they manage so they tend to be rather ineffective.
Fourth, improve upper management attitude toward the working man and hiring practices. This job used to be a place where you could make a career, provide for a family, and live the middle-class life. Therefore, the company was able to hire people with a middle-class work ethic and the employee felt a pride in their job. With all of the cutbacks, this is no longer possible (What is the difference between a pizza and an airline employee?......A pizza, these days, can still feed a family of 4.) Therefore, the pool of "available" labor is whittled down. Although many of the newest employees are great, many more of them are kids who do not see much of a future here and don't have the vested interest in the job that many of the "older folk" have. "You get what you pay for!" Hiring in PHL is often done in desperation, often disregarding the quality of the prospective employee or their potential ability to do the job properly. Because they have little or no vested interest in their job, they feel free to loaf rather than work, tell a manager to "go to he**" if they are challenged, and the newest learn quickly how to "work" the fact that the job needs them more than they need the job. Doug has said that this is the way of the new USAirways. Every time we see another "executive" walk away with huge bonuses while we have to swallow cutbacks and poor working conditions....well....who in their right mind would want this job? It's a pity! If you give employees some pride and a sense of future, this goes a long way......
Last (at least for this posting) better staffing. When I first worked inside as a gate agent, there were 3 agents per gate. Two were full-timers who stayed at that gate and worked whatever came. The third was a part-timer who was there to cover breaks and be an extra hand for heavy flights. Nowadays, you're lucky if you can find the ONE gate agent who is often covering more than one flight and/or gate. This causes poor customer contact and lots of complaints. Unlike most of our stations, we are a hub, stretched across a highly inadequate facility, with far too few qualified people to handle the tasks.
Oh....one more thing that is beyond the control of USAirways.....sort of......ATC. We are situated smack in the middle of the busiest traffic area in the USA. We have 3 major airports within 100 miles to the south (BWI/DCA/IAD) and 3 more within 100 miles to the north (LGA/EWR/JFK). Go another few miles north and add BOS. If any of them has an issue, we are the first affected. When weather hits, our limited ground space becomes a nightmare unbelievable to anyone who has not witnessed it. Five minutes of rain and thunder can cause 3-hour delays.
The city (who owns the airport) and the state (after our rape of PIT) both hate us and the arrival of Southwest into PHL was due to the sweetheart deal that they got. It was a deal they just couldn't afford to refuse!
Having said all of that, let me say that in my years, many fine people have worked (and many still do) in PHL. Throughout all of the above garbage, they have continued to keep plugging. Until you have "lived" PHL......don't knock it!
So much for a handout. <_<
