UAL and IAM reach TA

[P3-Adub]

Publisher

You might check your numbers. Believe everthing you read in the newspaper ? We all know how acurate they can be. Great discussion otherwise.

 

[RueterF16]

UAL

UAL Express, I think you misunderstood my coment about United. I wasn't referring to their size or manpower, I was referring to there status. They will probably NEVER be te airline they were 5-6 years ago. The travelling public won't alow that to happen. I wish they could become wha thy once were but, they've put theirselves into a very very precarious position, and they will be very lucky to come out of it unscathed. You can have all the cash in the world but, if you're burning 3-5 million a day, that equates to 1-1.8 Billion a year. If they don't get their revenues up, they are short for the industry. I would hate to se them go the way of te dinosaur but, I think everyone that works there is going to have to make some great concessions or they won't have jobs.

 

[RueterF16]

EGAD!!

Man my typing sucks!!!

 

[RightBettor]

yA i nnnotticd

Remember,

Friends don't friends drink and post!

 

[Ualexpress]

Rueter,

I think to assume that UAL will NEVER hold the same status as it did 5-6 years ago is going way too far out on a limb. You need to look no further than past airline history. CAL was the dredge of the industry for most of 1980s and early 1990s and they recovered to be one the best customer service orientated airlines in the industry. NWA went through a period in 1998 and 99 that included horrible service, a pilots strike and the snowstorm fiasco in which hundreds of people were stranded in their planes for up to 8 hours. It took a while but they also recovered nicely. United has one of the best hub and route structures in this country and is part of the best airline alliance in the world (Star Alliance). United needs a mangement team that can lead and that can restore customer and employee confidence.

To say that the only way UAL is going to survive is for the employees to take huge pay cuts does not solve United's biggest problem, restoring passenger confidence. The new CEO is well on his way to doing this (UALs is enjoying its best operational performance in years). Sure if you read The Wall Street Journal everyday you will begin to believe what you read even though much of the info is twisted and contrived and made to look as if the employees are the main problem at UAL. I am sure it is frustrating as an employee to watch your management single-handedly try to dismantle your airline and squander billions of dollars of money from the last round of concessions in 1994-2000 and then to read in the weeklies how it is your fault.

You also assume that revenue will not increase. Summer is coming (the busiest travel season) and travelers are returning. Paycuts will not bring passengers back and if passenger don't return then no amount of paycuts will save the airline. So I think UALs biggest obstacle is improving it's customer service and performance. If the employees give back I am sure there will be many stipulations and guaranteed snapbacks at a certain profit level or date.

I also read an article today stating that CAL was forecasting a loss for the year and is losing 2 million a day (CAL is half the size of United roughly) and is thinking of retiring permanently airplanes they had parked temporarily because of their situation. So are their employees, who are among the lowest paid among the majors, to take concessions too? Why is it that an airline that pays it's employees 30-40% less than the rest of the industry not making money? First the revenue is not there yet. Secondly, since CAL has been through bankruptcy their credit is worse than that of it rivals and pays much more for their aircraft and equiptment leases.

Time will tell, but I think it is too easy for people to make assesments on situations they read and hear through rumors. Especially in situations in which that person is not involved and has no vested interest.

 

[ivauir]

but I think it is too easy for people to make assesments on situations they read and hear through rumors. Especially in situations in which that person is not involved and has no vested interest.

So people make better assesments when they have a vested interest?

Not that I totally disagree with your point ... it wasn't that long ago folks were lauding the UAL pilots for "raising the bar", and had the merger worked/we avoided 911, UAL probably would be top dog.

Unfortunatly, in the real world UAL may be in trouble. The status quo is no longer gonna cut it for UAL, wage concessions across the board is the kind of radical thing that might just be what it takes (didn't Lee Iacoca work for a dollar one year?) Of course that is not the only thing that might work and it wouldn't even work by itself. The bottom line (IMHO) is that, now, more than ever, adaptability is the key to success in this marketplace. UAL can be an industry leader again, but to those of us without a vested interest it doesn't look like they are on track yet.

One way or another, I think we are going to see quite a show!