Delta Airlines and Nortwest Airlines Flight Attendant Choose to Join Union
Steve Slater’s case, JetBlue airlines flight attendant, encourage employees at some airlines take a position whether to join the union. Federal regulators have determined that Delta Airlines and Northwest Airlines as a trigger process approximately 20 000 employees to choose whether to join a union.
Delta is the least-unionized of the major airlines, with only its pilots and a handful of others now in a brotherhood, and the airline has fought valiantly to keep its FAs from joining together in a union. The mediation board, a little-known agency that oversees airline and rail labor issues, now has two Obama-appointed members who earlier this year changed a key procedure when workers petition it, asking for a union representation election. Now it takes a simple majority of all the employees in a work class (such as flight attendants) to approve unionization in an election; previously, representation had to be approved by a majority of those voting, which meant those not voting were counted as “no.” It remains to be seen if the Delta employees will vote for the Association of Flight Attendants to now be their bargaining agent. Count on Delta telling the employees the company thinks it’s a bad idea.
Back to Mr. Slater. His action, ranting, grabbing two beers and activating the emergency slide on his JetBlue jet, has prompted a number of serious looks at the stresses of being a flight attendant. Practically everyone who flies — customers and FAs alike — is cranky these days because of crowded conditions, a less-than-hospitable welcome by some employees and fees that have prompted more of us to do carry-on bags. The last problem has made the life of the cabin crew even more unpleasant, as people try to cram too much into overhead bins, stealing space wherever they can find it and stretching out the boarding and deplaning process.
What’s worse, many airlines have cut the pay of many of their employees, and there are far fewer employees at the major airlines than there were a decade ago — 23 percent fewer, to be exact, according to the U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics. The number of fulltime equivalent workers has even gone down 2.4 percent in the last year, since the depths of the recession, BTS reported today. Among the good commentary I’ve read about the attendants’ situation is today’s New York Times business travel column by Joe Sharkey.
As always, I try to look on the bright side: At least the number of flight attendants per aircraft is governed by federal regulation, based on the number of seats on a plane, so the ratio for each model plane has stayed the same as workers in other airline jobs have been cut.
One more idea: The next time you fly, why not try giving a real ‘thank you’ to the flight attendants. Or fly an airline (Southwest is the only one I know of ) where the cabin crew may sing songs, make jokes during the safety briefing and wear costumes around holidays. You may actually relax during a flight, and you will really mean it when you say ‘thanks for the ride.’
Conflict Two Largest Airlines Lufthansa and Emirates Airlines Possibility Continues
The ongoing row between airline giants Emirates and Lufthansa looks set to continue as the Dubai based carrier accuses the Germans of deliberately blocking a request for more access to Germany by making misleading claims. Emirates says that Lufthansa has distributed a document containing distorted facts about the Emirates business model, the number of flight Emirates makes to the country and the current situation regarding the carrier’s rights to land in Germany.
Emirates has made its dissatisfaction with Lufthansa’s document, which was distributed to German policy makers and the media, known in its own report which has been given the anti-protectionist title: Tearing Down the Other Wall.
In April, Lufthansa said that Emirates Airlines was clearly trying to divert airline traffic from Germany to the UAE. The airline has also said that by allowing Emirates to have more of a foothold in Germany would mean that German jobs would be lost to Dubai.
However Emirates argue that a bigger presence in Germany would provide economic benefits for the country. The carrier has already pointed out that its recent order for more Airbus A380s will contribute both directly and indirectly to tens of thousands of jobs, many of which are in Hamburg.
At the moment Emirates is restricted in Germany to flying from Dusseldorf, Hamburg, Frankfurt and Munich. For a number of years now the airline has been trying to get permission to open up its services to Berlin and Stuttgart. Although it claims the right to give customers in these cities the opportunity of choosing for themselves, Lufthansa has consistently opposed any expansion.
Global Airline Industry Expectations in 2010 : Aviation Firms Shares Rose Sharply
Airline stocks have been flying high in 2010 thanks to renewed hopes over an economic recovery, an uptick in business travel, and a stronger dollar. The Claymore/NYSE Arca Airline ETF (FAA) has shot higher on the news, gaining nearly 5% on the week and 15% so far on the year. A slight pullback in oil prices–one of the primary negative factors weighing on the airline industry–has also added momentum to FAA in recent sessions. Ongoing concerns over the financial health of Europe have boosted the greenback, which generally moves in the opposite direction of oil.
Alliance consolidation should also further help to boost revenues, as the world’s biggest airline, Delta Air Lines, looks for a new partner to assist in the expansion of international travel destinations. Not to be outdone, several of Delta’s chief rivals are also looking to strengthen international operations. “American Airlines, British Airways, and Iberia have taken significant steps toward allaying antitrust regulators’ concerns over their proposed alliance, offering a number of gates at New York’s John F. Kennedy Airport and London’s Heathrow and Gatwick airports to competitors,” writes Christopher Hinton. These developments could help many airlines open up more international routes, which could translate into increased profits. For many carriers, business and international are the most profitable operations.
Wall Street banks are beginning to take note of the improved outlook for the industry. UBS recently raised its target price on several carriers and Jesup & Lamont Securities forecast a smaller first-quarter loss for Delta. In further good news for Delta, the company raised its operating profit margin forecast for this quarter from 1% to 2% of sales, up from an estimate at the end of January of “break-even.” However, the best sign for investors in Delta was the large uptick in business travelers; ticket volume was up 34% in February compared to last year, producing a 32% rise in corporate travel revenue according to Barron’s.
EDS and Continental Airlines Ink Deal
EDS, an HP company and a technology services provider, announced an agreement with Continental Airlines to enhance its EDS Flight Planning Services in order to reduce flight operating expenses and create efficiencies for Continental by automating some aspects of flight planning.
As part of the agreement with Continental, EDS will develop, implement and deliver enhanced EDS Flight Planning Services. This will be delivered as a software-as-a-service (SaaS) model based on the EDS Airline SOA (service-oriented architecture) platform.
“The EDS Flight Planning Services will allow us to take full advantage of our modern fleet capabilities, achieve significant fuel savings and increase our operational flexibility,” said Mark Moran, executive vice president of Operations at Continental Airlines. “Our strong working relationship and successful track record together made EDS the right choice to deliver industry-leading flight planning technologies, which will seamlessly integrate with all our flight operations services.”
EDS Flight Planning is the fourth component in EDS’ flight operations suite being deployed to help transform Continental’s flight operations functions. As announced in March 2008, EDS is developing EDS Air-to-Ground Messaging Services, EDS Load Planning Services and EDS Aircraft Movement Services for Continental.
“Effective flight planning will enable Continental to reduce costs and increase operational efficiencies,” said Eric Harte, vice president and leader of the Consumer Travel Industry Group at EDS, an HP company. “The EDS team will combine deep expertise in the airline industry and applications development to transform Continental’s flight operations environment to optimize its cost per available seat mile.”
Boeing Co Again Postponed Deliveries of Boeing 787 Aircraft
Boeing Co. again postponed the delivery of its first Boeing Commercial Airplanes 787 to the middle of the 2011 first quarter, compounding a string of delays for the jetliner that is already more than two years past its original scheduled debut.
The latest delay is the result of engine delivery problems, Boeing said in a statement early Friday. The Chicago company said in July it expected to deliver the plane late this year, but it warned that might not happen. It had said at that time that a series of problems, including supplier work related to parts of the tail and instrument issues that might push the first delivery “a few weeks into 2011.”
The 787’s first customer, Japan’s All Nippon Airways, said in a statement the delay is regrettable especially “given the success of the flight test program so far.”
“However, we trust that the time will be used to deliver the best possible aircraft in the shortest possible time frame.”
The 787, which Boeing calls the Dreamliner, is made of many composite materials designed to make it lighter and more fuel-efficient than comparable planes already in the sky.
It lists for $150 million to $205.5 million, depending on the model, but major customers routinely get discounts.
Boeing said the delay won’t affect its financial expectations. Boeing spokeswoman Yvonne Leach said the company is working closely with British engine manufacturer Rolls-Royce to expedite engine deliveries, but current flight tests are continuing as planned.
Rolls-Royce said the delay was not related to the reported failure of an engine in a recent test.
“We have been informed by Boeing that the currently planned dates for Trent 1000 engine deliveries will not support their latest flight test program requirements,” Rolls-Royce said in a statement Friday.
However, Rolls-Royce confirmed “that the engine availability issue is unrelated to the test bed event which occurred earlier this month.”
The FlightGlobal website, an aviation news site, reported this week that a Trent 1000 engine suffered an “uncontained” failure – meaning debris broke out of the engine casing – during a test on Aug. 2.
