"Our pilots and all our frontline employees will do everything that we can to make sure that their travel experiences is satisfactory. Murray has a message for passengers and workers amid the ongoing struggles throughout the busy summer travel season. 7 to address staffing issues.Īmerican Airlines pilots have already demonstrated at DFW Airport this year. and Latin America, affecting travel from July 1 to Aug. In the letter, Delta pilots said they've been working on days off and pulling in more overtime in 2022 than all of 20 combined, which were their busiest years to date.ĭelta recently announced it was canceling some 100 daily departures from destinations in the U.S. Last Thursday, Delta Airlines published an open letter to customers who are frustrated by flights delays and cancellations. The SWA pilots are not alone in their protests. "Our contract that we're in negotiations for does that, it also allows Southwest to go out and hire - in a very competitive market - the best pilots." And if they're going to go out and and execute the schedule that is most profitable - because we've seen them reduce the schedule pretty much every month for a little more than a year - we want to see them go out and capture as much revenue as they can," said Murray. It addresses a lot of these issues to help the company. "Our contract has been completely rewritten. Murray added that a contract plan has been presented to the airlines as those negotiations continue. Southwest Airlines said in a statement that contract negotiations with pilots are ongoing. So it adds up and the more flying that there is that has to be covered,” Murray said. "Our pilots have lost over the last year almost 20,000 days off, which is over 50 years that our pilots have lost – involuntarily being made to fly on off days. He said pilots are feeling overworked during the never-ending travel demand and he hopes this will get the company's attention to negotiate new contracts and better treatment for pilots. In many cases, it's a longer flight, which has led pilots feeling fatigued and frustrated. Murray explained that many pilots start their day scheduled to fly to one destination only to receive a late reassignment that instructs them to fly elsewhere. "While we do need to hire pilots, the main problem is really the efficiency in the scheduling efficiencies that we've seen." And this has been going on for several years,” he said. "We've seen our company not really address a lot of operational problems. Murray said the biggest grievance is that Southwest has a problem with "bad scheduling" in connecting flights for pilots, which causes them to fly longer and become more fatigued. For 51 years, we’ve maintained a legendary southwest culture that honors our valued employees.” ![]() “Southwest airlines respects the rights of our employees to express their opinions, and we do not anticipate any disruption in service as a result of this single demonstration. “We’re aware that some off-duty pilots are participating in informational picketing,” Southwest Airlines told NBC 5 in a statement. The pilots and other supporters taking part in the picket are already scheduled to not work on Tuesday.Īccording to Southwest Airlines, the event shouldn't affect passengers who are scheduled to fly on Tuesday. According to the event website, union rules state pilots can't call in sick to take part in the picket and can't negatively impact the company's operation to attend. The union emphasizes this is not a walk out. As always, the Southwest Team is focused on delivering a safe and reliable operation, along with our legendary Southwest Hospitality, to Customers.Hundreds of pilots are expected to line up along Mockingbird Lane outside Love Field Tuesday for an informational picket The proposed vote does not affect operations in any way and is not an indication of an impending work stoppage. ![]() The mediators set the dates, location, and agenda for negotiating sessions and have continued to drive the parties toward closing out certain sections before addressing the more complex items in the contract. We are scheduled to resume mediation on January 24.”Īs of October 2022, Southwest and the Union are engaged in negotiations with assigned mediators from the National Mediation Board. The union’s potential vote does not hinder our ongoing efforts at the negotiating table. “We will continue to follow the process outlined in the Railway Labor Act and work, under the assistance of the National Mediation Board, toward reaching an agreement that rewards our Pilots and places them competitively in the industry. “SWAPA’s call for an authorization vote does not affect Southwest’s operation or our ability to take care of our Customers,” said Adam Carlisle, Vice President Labor Relations at Southwest Airlines. The Southwest Airlines Pilots Association announced today its intention to call for a strike authorization vote on May 1, 2023.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |