Industry Editorial

Page updated: January 5, 2006

moneyToday is Thursday, January 5, 2006, and this is an editorial comment from the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA at United Airlines.  This is retired Flight Attendant volunteer Jerry Butz, reporting from Chicago.

This New Year is barely underway and already there is a glut of major news events commanding our attention.  From the somber tragedy in a West Virginia coal mine, to a political power shift in Israel, to the corruption earthquake, which is about to engulf the U.S. Congress and beyond, the first 96 hours since the ball dropped in “Times Square” have been astonishing.  When added to the unfinished stories of 2005, this is setting up to be a momentous twelve months.  Maybe not Oprah-worthy, but fascinating nonetheless. 

And we can expect a fanfare of self-congratulations from Glenn Tilton and his 400 closes friends, who will gorge themselves at the trough of 11% equity in the new United.

In our own backyard, UAL is getting ready to fly solo again without the training wheels of bankruptcy protection.  And we can expect a fanfare of self-congratulations from Glenn Tilton and his 400 closes friends, who will gorge themselves at the trough of 11% equity in the new United.  That’s a sweet deal in the hundreds of millions of dollars for a group of people who have yet to prove they know how to run an airline.  Twice during the recent holiday period, United was embarrassed by operational chaos, one caused by sever understaffing, the other by a failure of technology, for which they had no Plan B.  If this is the kind of performance which justifies exit bonuses, where do the rest of us sign up?  Hell, we can under perform and lower our standards with the best of them, if that’s what it takes to get on the gravy train.  Now, Tilton will tell us that he and the fortunate 400 have lowered their equity bonanza from 15% to 11% because they don’t want to appear greedy.  How about dropping it to zero percent, Glenn?   You and your pals don’t deserve a damn penny extra until those who have been doing the heavy lifting and working through waves of sacrifice have begun to regain some of what they gave up for the cause.  If you can’t get by on six and seven figure incomes, you’re just not trying.   So, before you load up a jet and land on an aircraft carrier proclaiming “Mission Accomplished,” how about doing a reality check?  Try putting some “humanity” back into Human Resources.  Stop treating Flight Attendants like errant children who respond only to discipline.  Jane Allen’s philosophy isn’t going over any better here than it did at American.  If you really believe that this company is full of happy employees who whistle their way through a workday, then you should join your friend, George W. Bush, inside the isolation bubble.  But we doubt that even you are that lacking in curiosity.

2006 can be a year of renewal at this proud company if only you’ll lead with a personal example of shared sacrifice, an example that can be perceived as genuine by even the most cynical among us.  Wouldn’t you like that to be your legacy, worthy of a Pat Patterson or a Herb Kelleher, rather than the guy who bailed out with a fistful of dollars?  You’re smart enough to know the difference, Glenn.

Finally, a personal note: on Tuesday’s DEAR AFA, Sara Nelson Dela Cruz commented on the passing of retired Flight Attendant, Alan Levin.  There are many tired clichés we could roll out to describe Alan, none of which does adequate justice to him.  If you’re among the thousands of United employees who spent any time in his company, on or off the job, you couldn’t help but carry away some part of his boundless energy, his passion for life and all its possibilities, his personal and professional ethics in dealing with friends or strangers.  But whenever Alan Levin’s name is mentioned, the common recall will be the laughter he generated through his wicked sense of humor.  That’s no small gift, and God, we’ll miss it.

We’ll be back on January 19.  Thanks for calling.

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