lowecur
Well-known member
- Joined
- Sep 14, 2003
- Posts
- 2,317
UAIR asks employees to work for free this weekend
Well here's a novel approach. You know what, I bet you get alot of takers here. The employees have to do something to show the public that this was a minority of workers that pulled the plug. It will be interesting to see if the press gives this as much publicity as last weekend. Besides, with GE looking over their shoulder, it's good PR.
As far as disciplining employees who abused sick time, lots of luck without proof. Interesting note at the bottom that the FAs comparitive sick calls to last year was very close. I'm not buying it, as you can't have that many flts canceled without FA's not showing up. Besides, the Association chastises them on the web site, and then denies that there was much difference from last year. We already know 1/3 of the IAMs workers didn't show. That was expected.
US Airways Appeals for Employees to Help
12.28.2004, 06:24 PM
US Airways appealed to its employees to come to Philadelphia International Airport on their days off this weekend to help boost staffing, hoping to avoid the type of Christmas fiasco that left the airline with too few workers to fly all its planes and process luggage.
Separately, the airline also warned employees that it would review the attendance records of those who called in sick over the holidays and discipline any healthy workers who abused the sick time system.
US Airways Group Inc. canceled hundreds of flights in the days around Christmas when an unusually large number of flight attendants and baggage handlers failed to show up for work, crippling a flying operation already hampered by days of bad weather.
The debacle left an estimated 10,000 undelivered bags at Philadelphia's airport and stranded travelers along the east coast. Many vowed to never again fly the airline, which is trying to emerge from bankruptcy.
In a message to its employees Tuesday, US Airways sought volunteers willing to give up their New Year's Eve plans and work for free in Philadelphia. It said they could expect to be used as customer greeters, ramp agents or baggage sorters.
In a separate note, the company said it would conduct an "enhanced review" of each worker's attendance record from Dec. 23 to Jan. 3 to determine who should be disciplined, or denied pay, because of the spike in sick calls.
Also Tuesday, the president of the US Airways unit of the Association of Flight Attendants posted a message on the union's Web site chastising workers who failed to report to work over the holidays.
"By now, we have all seen the reports on the news about the operation of our airline over this past holiday weekend, and how that operation failed miserably. This was caused, unfortunately, by a minority of employees who appear to have decided to take some type of action against the company," wrote Perry Hayes.
"Sadly, the employees who took this action may ultimately cause the failure of the airline."
US Airways is struggling to stay afloat and has asked its major unions to accept large pay cuts if the airline is to survive. A bankruptcy court judge temporarily slashed the pay of all workers by 21 percent in October.
Several unions, including the ones who represent flight attendants and baggage handlers, have been in negotiations over permanent pay cuts, leaving many employees bitter about their future with the airline.
Union leaders have denied there was any organized effort to get workers to call in sick, and some dispute that this year's sick calls were much different from those around any other holiday.
Mollie McCarthy, the president of the Association of Flight Attendants chapter in Philadelphia, said 238 flight attendants called out sick on Christmas Eve this year, compared to 261 in 2003. She said 306 called out sick on Christmas Day this year, compared to 298 in 2003.
"We love this company. It is our home. It is our family," McCarthy said. "This time, the public is blaming us. We're their neighbors. We are the people who help them on the airplane. And they don't trust us anymore."
Well here's a novel approach. You know what, I bet you get alot of takers here. The employees have to do something to show the public that this was a minority of workers that pulled the plug. It will be interesting to see if the press gives this as much publicity as last weekend. Besides, with GE looking over their shoulder, it's good PR.
As far as disciplining employees who abused sick time, lots of luck without proof. Interesting note at the bottom that the FAs comparitive sick calls to last year was very close. I'm not buying it, as you can't have that many flts canceled without FA's not showing up. Besides, the Association chastises them on the web site, and then denies that there was much difference from last year. We already know 1/3 of the IAMs workers didn't show. That was expected.
US Airways Appeals for Employees to Help
12.28.2004, 06:24 PM
US Airways appealed to its employees to come to Philadelphia International Airport on their days off this weekend to help boost staffing, hoping to avoid the type of Christmas fiasco that left the airline with too few workers to fly all its planes and process luggage.
Separately, the airline also warned employees that it would review the attendance records of those who called in sick over the holidays and discipline any healthy workers who abused the sick time system.
US Airways Group Inc. canceled hundreds of flights in the days around Christmas when an unusually large number of flight attendants and baggage handlers failed to show up for work, crippling a flying operation already hampered by days of bad weather.
The debacle left an estimated 10,000 undelivered bags at Philadelphia's airport and stranded travelers along the east coast. Many vowed to never again fly the airline, which is trying to emerge from bankruptcy.
In a message to its employees Tuesday, US Airways sought volunteers willing to give up their New Year's Eve plans and work for free in Philadelphia. It said they could expect to be used as customer greeters, ramp agents or baggage sorters.
In a separate note, the company said it would conduct an "enhanced review" of each worker's attendance record from Dec. 23 to Jan. 3 to determine who should be disciplined, or denied pay, because of the spike in sick calls.
Also Tuesday, the president of the US Airways unit of the Association of Flight Attendants posted a message on the union's Web site chastising workers who failed to report to work over the holidays.
"By now, we have all seen the reports on the news about the operation of our airline over this past holiday weekend, and how that operation failed miserably. This was caused, unfortunately, by a minority of employees who appear to have decided to take some type of action against the company," wrote Perry Hayes.
"Sadly, the employees who took this action may ultimately cause the failure of the airline."
US Airways is struggling to stay afloat and has asked its major unions to accept large pay cuts if the airline is to survive. A bankruptcy court judge temporarily slashed the pay of all workers by 21 percent in October.
Several unions, including the ones who represent flight attendants and baggage handlers, have been in negotiations over permanent pay cuts, leaving many employees bitter about their future with the airline.
Union leaders have denied there was any organized effort to get workers to call in sick, and some dispute that this year's sick calls were much different from those around any other holiday.
Mollie McCarthy, the president of the Association of Flight Attendants chapter in Philadelphia, said 238 flight attendants called out sick on Christmas Eve this year, compared to 261 in 2003. She said 306 called out sick on Christmas Day this year, compared to 298 in 2003.
"We love this company. It is our home. It is our family," McCarthy said. "This time, the public is blaming us. We're their neighbors. We are the people who help them on the airplane. And they don't trust us anymore."
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