Us Airways Ceo Looking For Pay Cuts

[700UW]

TED REED

Staff Writer


PRATTVILLE, Ala. - Top officers of US Airways said Wednesday they will take a labor-friendly approach as they negotiate the airline's survival plan, but they stressed that new labor agreements should be in place by Sept. 30 if the carrier is to survive.

"If we put all our cards on the table -- nothing fancy, nothing cute -- we can find our way," Chief Executive Officer Bruce Lakefield told about 50 shareholders and other guests at the first annual meeting since the airline emerged from bankruptcy in March 2003.

http://www.charlotte.com/mld/charlotte/business/8709587.htm

 

[Tim Nelson]

The ATSB will not do anything to put out 28,000 workers right before a general election.

Ironically, the article of this thread is much like the one in 2002 with Seigel. It identifies the new exec as 'labor friendly' and then goes on to say how he now wants about $1 billion from workers pockets. It does harm to logic since it violates principles of non-contradiction.

As a side, considering the context above, I am deeply offended that the IAM board member spoke in support of Lakefield as opposed to speaking in support of the IAM members he is suppose to represent. It is simply profane and appears as misplaced loyalties.

IMO, there should be no credit given to Lakefield from someone who represents labor until he addresses workers in a fair and equitable way. For the IAM members, I mean how can the IAM board member speak in salute of Lakefield, while at the same time, Lakefield, who has the power, but has so far decided not 'to act' by dropping the pending arbitration case where the company wants to contract out alot of heavy maintenance?????? Labor friendly?...you decide.

regards,

 

[unit4clt]

I am also offended by the IAM board rep. comments. At the very least he could have stated that IAM members have given enough!!

:down:

 

[delldude]

Glass told reporters that leaders expect to negotiate labor deals in July and have them ratified in August and implemented in September.

i'll be in the backroom holding my breath on this.

 

[700UW]

You have to remember one thing, Joe is bound by fiduciary responsibility to the Board and the shareholders, that is the law and how it works.

 

[APL Refugee]

I am also offended by the IAM board rep. comments. At the very least he could have stated that IAM members have given enough!!

:down:

Yeah, that's a good way to enter negotiations!

"OK, we already gave, and we are done giving. So, what was it you wanted to talk about?"

Every group at this company has to re-align itself with the rest of the industry, at least for now. The pilots have done the most.......they should be left alone for a while. :angry:

 

[700UW]

Yeah, that's a good way to enter negotiations!

"OK, we already gave, and we are done giving. So, what was it you wanted to talk about?"

Every group at this company has to re-align itself with the rest of the industry, at least for now. The pilots have done the most.......they should be left alone for a while. :angry:

There are not going to be negotiations between the IAM and the company unless it is court ordered in chapter 11. The IAM has had the most outragous violation of our contract then any other group, we have more people laid off then the pilots and the pilots make the most, go tell the utility folks who make $35k a year that they are gonna have to hit the road or take a $5k a year paycut.

ALPA has sold out every group on this property with LOA 91, they ensured your laid off members get jobs but screwed every other group out there. Wake up and smell the coffee.

The company wants to basically eliminate the maintenance department, there is no incentive what so ever to talk to the company and their actions have shown you can't trust them anyhow!

Our mechanics and utility are the lowest paid out of the majors including WN.

 

[700UW]

Bob,

It boils down to one thing, it is still Siegel's plan, the only thing that changed is the band leader.

No airline to this date has returned to profitiblity on employee concessions alone. There is still no vision on how to generate revenue and do business smart. The still waste millions of dollars on doing business stupid, they have still not acted upon one single cost savings item the IAM provided the company back in March which is $80 to $100 million. They still have not taken full use of the concessions all ready provided in two previous rounds.

I hate to say it but we are in a course to go back into bankruptcy and probably never come out.

 

[Tim Nelson]

Bob,

It boils down to one thing, it is still Siegel's plan, the only thing that changed is the band leader.

No airline to this date has returned to profitiblity on employee concessions alone. There is still no vision on how to generate revenue and do business smart. The still waste millions of dollars on doing business stupid, they have still not acted upon one single cost savings item the IAM provided the company back in March which is $80 to $100 million. They still have not taken full use of the concessions all ready provided in two previous rounds.

I hate to say it but we are in a course to go back into bankruptcy and probably never come out.

agreed.

Although there are some on this board that will paint this guy a savior, it is basically Seigel's plan. Nothing new here.

At any rate, things appear academic now. The only question for many employees is, will they be fortunate enough to be laid off and collect severance + unemployment benefits, or laid off when things finally come to a close? And for those who are above 50, they may get the best opportunity out of all by leaving with an early retirement in the neighborhood of $25,000 up front.

With all of the above benefits to protect in this end game, I can't see anyone just quitting.

regards,

 

[MrAeroMan]

There are not going to be negotiations between the IAM and the company unless it is court ordered in chapter 11. The IAM has had the most outragous violation of our contract then any other group, we have more people laid off then the pilots and the pilots make the most, go tell the utility folks who make $35k a year that they are gonna have to hit the road or take a $5k a year paycut.

ALPA has sold out every group on this property with LOA 91, they ensured your laid off members get jobs but screwed every other group out there. Wake up and smell the coffee.

The company wants to basically eliminate the maintenance department, there is no incentive what so ever to talk to the company and their actions have shown you can't trust them anyhow!

Our mechanics and utility are the lowest paid out of the majors including WN.

I'm not so sure about your comments here. Seems there are mechanics who would be just fine to throw utility, GSE, fleet service and other non-mechanic members directly under the bus if management came to them with such a plan and a pay increase for the mechanics. I asked a relative in the CLT IAM and he said there are a lot of mechanics that feel that way and the mechanics have the numbers to actually do this. Maybe the resolve isn't as emboldened as we are led to believe on these boards.

 

[700UW]

But those mechanics do not negotiate the contract and those mechanics will realize that US does not want them either.

They want a virtual maintenance department and if you dont believe me, the company said they signed a contract with MAE for 10 planes, funny planes 11 and 12 are down there and the company has planes scheduled at MAE thru next May.

You cant even trust what they say as they are a bunch or liars. And they laid off all the mechanics and then some more all ready

From US Airways:

"US AIRWAYS TO CONTRACT WITH MOBILE AEROSPACE FOR
OVERHAUL WORK ON 10 AIRBUS AIRCRAFT DUE FOR CHECKS THIS FALL

Airbus Overhaul Work Will Not Result in Any Mechanic Furloughs

Agreement Preserves All Options for Future Airbus Maintenance as Airline Continues to Explore Alternatives with the International Association of Machinists

Airline Will Also Recall Mechanics to Handle De-Icing Operations
at Philadelphia and Pittsburgh Airports for the Upcoming Winter Season

ARLINGTON, Va., Oct. 6, 2003 -- US Airways today informed the International Association of Machinists (IAM) that it will contract with ST Mobile Aerospace Engineering, Inc. (Mobile Aerospace) located in Mobile, Ala., for the overhaul of only 10 Airbus narrow body aircraft that are due for heavy maintenance checks this fall. The airline will continue to explore with the union the assignment of future Airbus heavy maintenance work.


The decision to use an airline maintenance facility for the 10 Airbus narrow body aircraft due for overhaul this fall will allow those aircraft to return to service quickly so that US Airways can continue to execute its court-approved plan of reorganization as well as the business plan required by the terms of the Air Transportation Stabilization Board’s (ATSB) federal loan guarantee.

US Airways mechanics will continue to do the day-to-day line maintenance on all aircraft. In addition, they will continue to do heavy maintenance on all of the airline’s Boeing fleet. The airline’s narrow body fleet includes 148 Boeing 737 and 757 aircraft and 112 Airbus A320 family aircraft out of a total fleet of 279 aircraft. “Our court-approved plan of reorganization and the ATSB loan guarantee agreement both include our flying a mixed fleet of Boeing and Airbus planes, and there have been no considerations, let alone decisions, about a long-term fleet plan beyond the term of the ATSB loan,â€￾ said Prestifilippo.

The 10 planes due for overhaul represent less than 4 percent of the US Airways fleet, and the work is required as part of the routine maintenance program established by Airbus. Once the overhauls on the 10 aircraft are completed, it will be almost a year until the next round of Airbus heavy checks are needed, when a minimum of six and a maximum of ten aircraft come due in September 2004.

The Mobile Aerospace work will be backed up by full-time US Airways quality assurance staff that will work on-site. “Our priority must be to keep these aircraft on the maintenance schedule that is necessary for the safety and comfort of our passengers and crew,â€￾ said Prestifilippo.

In addition to no furloughs as the result of today’s announcement, Prestifilippo also said that US Airways had informed the IAM that the airline will recall mechanics to handle airport de-icing operations at Philadelphia and Pittsburgh airports for the 2003-04 winter season.

US Airways will begin working immediately with Mobile Aerospace to prepare for work to start on the 10 scheduled aircraft at its Mobile, Ala., facility. Mobile Aerospace was established in 1990 and is recognized as a leading third-party maintenance and overhaul facility in the United States, having performed maintenance work on more than 2,600 aircraft since its inception. Among its customers are commercial airlines, charter operators, freight carriers and leasing companies from around the world. The company, whose operations are regulated by the FAA, employs over 1,700 technical, engineering and administrative people, comprising mostly licensed Airframe and Powerplant (A&P) aircraft mechanics."

From the FAA: http://av-info.faa.gov/repairstation.asp?certno=MZAR013L

Personnel
Certificated Mechanics: 532
Repairmen: 74
Non-Certificated Mechanics: 1173
Total Employees: 1776

Can someone explain how 532 licensed is mostly compared to 1,173 unlicensed mechanics?

 

[sentrido]

Pretty soon, even robots will take a stand!

 

[openview]

There are not going to be negotiations between the IAM and the company unless it is court ordered in chapter 11. The IAM has had the most outragous violation of our contract then any other group,

If I was a mechanic, I'd solicit some other mechanics and start my own independent company outsource maintenance work and underbid Mobile Aerospace or luv or whoever's. Seems to be the way of the future.

 

[El Gato]

No airline to this date has returned to profitiblity on employee concessions alone. There is still no vision on how to generate revenue and do business smart. The still waste millions of dollars on doing business stupid, they have still not acted upon one single cost savings item the IAM provided the company back in March which is $80 to $100 million. They still have not taken full use of the concessions all ready provided in two previous rounds.

I hate to say it but we are in a course to go back into bankruptcy and probably never come out.

No airline to this date has returned to profitiblity on employee concessions alone. There is still no vision on how to generate revenue and do business smart. The still waste millions of dollars on doing business stupid, they have still not acted upon one single cost savings item the IAM provided the company back in March which is $80 to $100 million. They still have not taken full use of the concessions all ready provided in two previous rounds.

True. Just for enlightenment, could you detail what the IAM has proposed to save their memberships jobs?

I hate to say it but we are in a course to go back into bankruptcy and probably never come out.

Why would you hate to say that? Aren't you mister "full pay to the last day, hell no I won't lift a finger to help, let's burn this place down"? But then, you can act all confident about it since you have a job with Otis elevator waiting for you, right? Screw the other groups, just take what is yours, eh? Real sense of teamhood there.

 

[700UW]

The last time I checked it was over paid corporate robber barons who made the decisions on how to run this airline out of business. The IAM has provided numerous ways to do business better only to fall upon deaf ears, get your head out of the sand and follow what has been going on and then you would understand

March 15, 2004

Dear Sisters and Brothers,

In response to the demonstrations by IAM members at US Airways’ airport terminals in Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Charlotte and Boston, the airline agreed to meet with the Machinists Union to discuss items IAM members have identified that, if enacted by the company, would provide US Airways with significant cost savings.

The initial meeting took place in Philadelphia on March 10, 2004 when US Airways Corporate Officers, local management and finance personnel met with IAM representatives from Districts 141 and 141-M, local committees and our economic advisor.

Both Districts presented significant cost savings proposals. District 141 identified more than a dozen items that would save the company money. District 141-M explained the significant cost savings the company could realize by repairing certain aircraft components in-house with IAM members instead of shipping the components to vendors. IAM and US Airways financial experts are currently working on the valuation of the IAM’s proposal.

US Airways has committed to continue working with the IAM to identify ways to reduce the carrier’s costs. Additional meetings between District 141 and US Airways are already scheduled for the week of March 22 in Philadelphia to continue evaluating and refining our ideas. District 141-M representatives will be meeting with the Senior VP of Maintenance this week in Pittsburgh to further discuss the IAM’s cost saving ideas.

We thank all members that participated in the March 5 demonstrations. Your support and solidarity is what forced US Airways to listen to our ideas.

Sincerely and fraternally,

Scotty Ford
President
IAM District 141-M

To this day the company has not acted upon any of the suggestions provided.