Airline Pledges No Pay Cuts

[BoeingBoy]

Airline pledges no pay cuts

Oct 14 2004

Daily Post


TRAVEL giant US Airways yesterday offered assurances that plans to impose a 23% cut in staff pay would not affect its employees in Liverpool.

The US carrier employs about 95 people at its call centre in Tithebarn Street and is in the process of recruiting additional staff.

The struggling group is currently in Chapter 11, the second time in the space of two years. This gives companies in the US protection from being sued and made bankrupt by its creditors while it seeks to refinance itself.

The company has asked a judge in the United States bankruptcy court in Virginia to allow it to temporarily cut pay rates previously agreed with airline unions in order to help keep costs within tight financial limits.

An airline spokesman said: "The pay cut does not affect staff in Liverpool at all. It has to do with union agreements in the States.

"Older airlines are facing tough competition from newer airlines that don't have the same high wages as we do."

The airline wants to turn itself into a hybrid low-cost and transatlantic operation. The Liverpool operation takes reservations for its transatlantic routes from passengers around Europe.

 

[Light Years]

I met one of the Liverpool employees, and was surprised that it was such a big center. The center has been there since 2000, but the only time it was ever mentioned was one time when they won an award there was a write-up in US Daily.

I don't think the 23% pay cut affects any of the international employees. The ramp is contracted out in Europe, mostly to ServisAir, and some check-in functions are too. Each station has a station manager and a few agents that are US employees, but I think they are under different contracts than the USA employees. Are they CWA?

 

[Aryeh]

I met one of the Liverpool employees, and was surprised that it was such a big center. The center has been there since 2000, but the only time it was ever mentioned was one time when they won an award there was a write-up in US Daily.

I don't think the 23% pay cut affects any of the international employees. The ramp is contracted out in Europe, mostly to ServisAir, and some check-in functions are too. Each station has a station manager and a few agents that are US employees, but I think they are under different contracts than the USA employees. Are they CWA?

[post="190808"][/post]​

Fortunately for workers in the European Union, such drastic pay cuts, though technically permissible, would be near impossible.
And despite Alitalia's trouble's (they've always had them!) and other European LCC's, despite the competition they are facing, like never before, no worker would find themself having to choose between, a) remaining employed but impoverished or B) quit and become impoverished.

 

[EyeInTheSky]

Fortunately for workers in the European Union, such drastic pay cuts, though technically permissible, would be near impossible.
And despite Alitalia's trouble's (they've always had them!) and other European LCC's, despite the competition they are facing, like never before, no worker would find themself having to choose between, a) remaining employed but impoverished or B) quit and become impoverished.

[post="190919"][/post]​

Aryeh, that's because they pay huge taxes in the EU. My pilot friends in Holland pay 70% taxes. Yes, they have healthcare for life and other benefits but they've paid for it.