Overstaffing
I've heard the same thing. There is also discussion that is on-going that the reserve manning isn't meeting the required contract numbers & that reserve numbers maybe going up. I know there are honest differences on how these numbers are being matched up. It is also thought that this dog has been on a leash for so long & that with new aircraft pending, it is time to unleash it & let it run (my thoughts only).
I visited a res center the other day & they informed me they believed the yields would be up based upon several factors.
A slightly higher percentage of full fare tickets being sold. Less discounting. The traditional pre-holiday big sales that have gone on the in past, well you aren't seeing them this year & that is the first that has happened in a long time according to them.
Direct marketing to spanish speaking demographics is going well. This groups buys on average the highest one way Y fare of any other group. While their sales are small in comparison to all fares, it is growing & along with higher yields from regular customers, this bodes well for us.
New technology to allow us to meet new postal requirements for carrying mail should be implemented soon. This is a money maker for the cargo folks & us. A friend is working this issue & it seems like it is in the final phases of development.
Lower personnel costs. Feb 28, 3 res centers close. 1900 folks will either re-locate to new SWA locations or removed from the payroll (as I have been told, nothing official, anyone choosing to leave SWA received 3 months of severance pay, continued coverage of medical for a period of time & some coverage w/COBRA payments for awhile longer, flt benefits , 1 yr of flying for every 2 yrs of employment). Anyone's guess as to how many will depart the payroll for good but this will lower our ratio of employees to aircraft from its current number of around 86 per airplane. As a side note, several other service related industries have offered the SWA employees who wish to remain where they are jobs. I've been told JBlue, AOL & several other companies. This should ease the pain for some but demonstrates again the value other companies have (even in a soft job market) in well trained & loyal employees like the ones who will reluctantly choose to remain in SLC, DAL, LIT. We will miss them all & wish them all good luck. The other res centers are pleased to welcome any of the newcomers.
We still have $2b in cash with another 1/2 billion on call. Expansion beyond what has been announced is possible but the good thing is we can flex or go with the current plan. To those waiting to come, good luck & for those wishing to interview start getting all your information, previous job addresses, phone numbers, references lined up, the time will come quickly when apps wil be accepted (hopefully 1qt '04) & the race will be on.
That's a little more rambling than you asked for, just trying to put everything in perspective, from my perspective only which is EXTREMELY LIMITED!!! Only one FOs opinion.