Consumer demand for travel isn’t going to equal what it was before the Covid pandemic for awhile, so airlines will offer fewer flights and won’t need as many employees. In general airlines have to keep employees based on seniority, but were prefer more junior employees who are paid less. So they’re offering senior employees buy outs to voluntarily separate from their company.
American Airlines is offering flight attendants with 10 or more years of seniority six months’ pay to leave the company plus additional health care funding. That’s half the pay that Southwest Airlines is offering.
Southwest managed to get enough early retirements and voluntary leaves that they don’t plan to furlough anyone this year. American’s early retirement numbers so far as of Friday total just 401. Many are reluctant to the deal because,
- It’s not that generous. If they take this deal and American ups the offer, they won’t get the richer payout.
- It’s not as much as the airline has offered in the past, or what competitors like Southwest are offering.
- They’re afraid of bankruptcy risk, without health care funding especially at risk in a Chapter 11 filing.
- Six months’ pay isn’t that enticing in this economy for employees who still plan to work.
American is looking for a combination of retirements and voluntary leaves totaling around 8500 to avoid furloughs. So the airline appears to have switched tactics. Instead of talking up how great the offer is, they appear to be pushing that those who stay with the airline are going to be miserable.
Here’s a note sent to flight attendants on Friday, telling them they aren’t going to like their work if they stay:
July 24, 2020
All Flight Service team members
What to expect after October 1Based on some of the questions we’ve been receiving, it’s clear many of you have spent the past week considering whether the voluntary programs we’re offering are right for you. While you are considering the details of these programs, I also want to make sure you fully understand the new reality of what your schedule and flying may look like. The reality is our business is going to change, moving forward and for the long-term. While we have talked about these ideas previously, it may be helpful to see it all together as you are deciding your future.
While we won’t know details of reserve seniority until the voluntary options window closes and any furloughs are determined, we expect it to increase significantly At some bases, reserve seniority will likely exceed 35 years. This is because we’ll likely have fewer junior flight attendants on the straight reserve or one-on, one-off rotation. Approximately 80% of flight attendants will be in the reserve rotation
Higher line averages will be prevalent as we build more efficient schedules with fewer flight attendants. You can expect line averages to be in the low to mid-80-hour range
70-hour paid VLOAs will be discontinued after Sept. and we’ll no longer offer monthly PVLOAs.We’ll continue to meet all contractual obligations, but trips will look a lot different as we need to build a more efficient schedule. What do we mean? More four-day domestic trips Longer duty days with multiple legs per day with potentially longer sit times and shorter layovers
Fewer IPD trips and fewer positions on each IPD trip As we announced earlier this month, we’ll reduce most widebody international crew complements to FAA minimum + one Transcons on the A321T will be operated with five flight attendants instead of six International flying will be down significantly through at least end of 2021
Displacements are possible as we right-size each base to operate more efficiently and in line with the airline schedule Currently, we’re overstaffed in bases like Miami, Los Angeles and Phoenix – meaning we have to build less than optimal trips, which is costly.
The 40-hour monthly minimum stays in place This is not only a contractual requirement but also affects how our bidding and trading systems work. With fewer monthly leaves offered, you should expect to fly each month.Masks are mandatory – without exception They will be part of our future for a while and you’ll be expected to wear one when you come to work
We have some unique offerings that are on the table when it comes to alternatives to flying. That’s why I wanted to paint a realistic picture of what life will be like beginning this fall. I know many of you have already decided that you are in this for the long-term because you still love this great profession and/or you need the financial stability this job provides. We are truly thrilled that you are staying part of the team, knowing what is ahead. With this decision, you’re re-committing yourself to rebuilding our airline and everything the flight attendant job will entail moving forward.
This is an important decision for each of you and one I know many of you are wrestling with. For those who are still contemplating their future, we hope that our continued information about the voluntary programs and what to expect with your schedule is helpful. American is and will continue to be a great place to work, and I’m confident the steps we’re taking now will position us for long-term survival.
On a straight seniority basis, after furloughs the average age of an American Airlines flight attendant will be in the mid-50s. The airline already has had a culture problem. Telling the more senior flight attendants who are left that their job is going to be miserable isn’t a way to encourage happy employees who take care of customers going forward.
And without voluntary retirements of more senior employees, the airline will face higher average costs for each flights (that will be staffed by crews making the highest level of pay). That’s going to make the airline even more cost-uncompetitive going forward, on top of having higher levels of debt and debt service expense than other airlines. They should consider more generous offers now because the payback from more junior, less expensive crew should be fairly quick as travel returns. Failure to do that could drive them into Chapter 11.
Did American mean just like the passenger experience?d
Gary, even if AA gets what they want out of the flight attendants, I still don’t see how they avoid bankruptcy. AA had so much debt before covid. Since covid will have taken on a lot more debt to help with their cash burn rate. Post covid they will have so much debt that it will limit the airline from competing effectively.
How many took the leaves and exits with UA? Interesting that no info on United is being leaked…
@Sean
Gary’s focus has always been on AA. 90% of his blog, as it relates to airlines, is targeted at everything AA does wrong.
@Sean
UA announced in their Q2 earnings release that they have about 6000+ sign up for their voluntary departure package; I don’t believe the pilots are included yet in those 6000.
Maybe the CEO of Boeing was right, that one of the major U.S. airlines will go bankrupt.
@ryby
And I oop! Lol
@Todd
6,000 doesn’t sound that good overall to me.
If you think Gary is focused only on AA, try to count the number of times he digs on Dr Dao. Hes digging on AA because AA has poor management.
One of the biggest hurdles that stops senior flight attendants from accepting this offer is if AA declared bankruptcy- they negate the retiree medical benefit which is the main carrot here. (Bridge to Medicare) AA has an excellent reputation for screwing its employees over.
Aircraft mechanics are in a similar situation, American recently hired a bunch of ( younger) mechanics with the anticipation of a smooth transition when their high seniority mechanics start to retire, take a look at the mechanic seniority list, it lists active mechanics with start dates from the early1980s.
One idea that should be explored is to lower the age for Social Security and Medicare to 55 for those in the airline sector.
Airline management is obligated to be transparent and honest at this time. They are not telling the flight crews that their job will be miserable ( your words), they are relating the harsh realities. I appreciate that. AA has been making excellent decisions and I believe they will not only make it through…but come out better!
Jean Delisi, why should that idea “be explored”?
I have no problem at all with this communication. The union employees need to understand exactly what the company plans to do and can do within their current agreement. If AA truly wants to rebuild into a more efficient airline they do need to push all employees, not just flight attendants, to the limit in order to do so.
If some of the old grandmothers AA has as flight attendants read this and quit then good! Frankly, I think mandatory retirement age of 65 (used to be 60 for pilots) is appropriate in an industry such as this. Union agreements shouldn’t protect the old fossils that work for AA.
Jean – more appropriate would be to offer military retirees & veterans this 55 option—after all they defended this country & the freedoms & rights you enjoy every day.
MANDATORY RETIREMENT AGE 35 except for those who take a personality test and confirm they are not grumpy schmucks !!!
I totally agree with Jason, well not totally, eliminate the option to stay if they pass the grump test.
In this plan, I don’t see any option but for a FA to be grumpy. But at least they will now understand how I have felt the last two years while sitting, and waiting, and being inconvenienced in every conceivable way.
I truly hope that AA has the intelligence to build their routes from the ground up and ignore their current bases, and employee stashes so they can employ some out of the box ideas.
And if I were working for AA, I think I would appreciate the ‘honesty’ that Aa is trying to present about the future of their jobs.
The only thing that is going to make me yearn to fly AA again would be for them to go bankrupt and bust the union and then totally start from scratch. Since that won’t happen, then I choose for them to go bankrupt and sell their planes to an entity that might try to emulate an asian airline.
You really are a piece of shit Gary. Get a life and stop your hate towards AA. You were fired . Let it go .
@Kevin Rivera – I have never worked for American Airlines, so no, I was not fired from American.
Legacy American has always been a competitor to be reckoned with. Current management has taken it to the trailer park, and this letter proves it. Real American would NEVER treat well-intentioned employees in this matter. I think it’s a disgusting prelude to their inevitable conclusions…
AA works its flight attendant already with under staffed airplanes . It can’t get any worst with the CEO at the helm. And as far as the buy outs there not letting them collect there pensions and lump sum until 2021.
And as far as senior flight attendant, have you seen the attitude on these junior flight attendants . They don’t know the meaning of work..
Ever since Bob Crandall left this airline it gone down the tubes..
No more class or elegance..
Gary you are just a hater! You constantly sling mud at AA. You compare compensation pkgs between airlines that are nowhere near the same size! Your articles are garbage. Why would a company actually being transparent about their plans going forward be a bad thing? Grow up and let go of whatever your beef with AA is.
@Steve W – while I’m not sure that size is relevant, you do realize that Southwest Airlines is a bigger domestic carrier than American is right?
I do understand the frustration someone has about AA treating FA, pilots, and mechanics, but why pass this frustration to Gary? He is just the messenger reporting on what is going on with an airline that used to be AA.
@Gary Leff are you sniffing glue that’s making you high or are u just an idiot ?
Gary keep up the good work of updating the public on what the airlines are doing.
Keep calling out wrongs in the travel industry.
A.C., if you think the senior “grandmothers” are going anywhere I have some cheap real estate to sell you in Manhattan. You haven’t a clue how much they REALLY make, how often they have to work, their benefits, etc. You’ve wasted your time posting.
You won’t get any particulars on UA’s “early out” (Voluntary Separation Package) because it varies by workgroup and union contract. Even some of the employees didn’t understand their respective program and could not get consistently accurate information so they decided to hang on.
I don’t see the word “miserable” anywhere in the letter. I also don’t see the qualifier that the reality of how their work may change, is in their contractual work rules.
If the company is doing anything, they are reminding them of the potential. American has been on the soft side of the work rules for the last five years. Less efficiency means higher costs. The new reality is… it’s time to be efficient. They should have done this long ago.
And important to note, the timing is perfect as the current contract is amendable.
As far as workforce reductions are concerned, the blogger misses a big point of clarity: Sure, at the time of writing, only 400 early outs. But he doesn’t tell how many are taking voluntary long-term leaves. The leaves and early outs are off the top of the seniority list. The furloughs are off the bottom. So the remaining workforce is somewhere in the middle. Americans flight attendants earne max pay at only 13 years so even if they offered greater financial incentives to depart the more senior folks, it probably wouldn’t save more money.
@Gary Leff – well I did give up sniffing glue, so if those are the only two choices…?
I don’t see the relevance in comparing Southwest vs American for domestic carrier size of we are taking about the flight attendant work group. Southwest staffs their airplanes with either three or four flight attendants. Americans planes can require up to 13 flight attendants. Even a domestic wide body requires double the number of flight attendants as southwest’s largest plane. There is no valid comparison of the two airlines based on required size of the flight attendant workforce.
@Amapas – this explains the relatively larger pool of flight attendants relative to pilots, not why it makes sense to offer less / get fewer voluntary buy outs of senior crew in order to keep more junior and lower paid staff.
@Jason… if a flight attendant takes a “grumpy” test, then all passengers should take a common sense, idiot test!!!! Do you really think flight attendants go to work to be pushed, screamed at, harassed and disparaged? Do you know that flight attendants work up to 16 hours a day and might be paid for 8. The next time you roll your eyes, speak rudely or forget that it is a federal offense to disregard crew members instructions, think about WHY they might be grumpy!!!! Maybe it’s YOU!
BTW. I AM NOT AN FA FOR AA’
Just get a life Gary
Please consider signing Chang.org petition for the 750+ flight attendants at American Airlines who retired May 1st, 2020 and are not
being grandfathered into this second VEOP.
‘Second VEOP should be retro with first VEOP-they are both Covid related.’
I guess I’m not understanding why being honest is a bad thing. None of these employees have been up against a situation as bad as this so rather than letting imaginations run wild, AA is painting a likely picture. Good for helping employees to make informed decisions.
Mark J. and Jason,
and maybe if they put entitled self centered passengers to the grumpy test, you two would be on a no fly list! your ageist attitude proves the kind of people you are..
Mark J. and Jason,
and maybe if they put self centered passengers to the grumpy test, you two would be on a no fly list! your ageist attitude proves the kind of people you are..
Another bozo with a blog….
They’re doing what all airlines should be doing – leveling with their employees about the landscape going forward. “Miserable” is your word, and while it may be eye-catching, your careless choice of words colors the message in a way that isn’t constructive for anyone. You should really do a bit more research on your “articles”. This isn’t the first instance of you taking poetic license (or failing to do adequate research) in an effort to mislead the reader.
@Domi – Amen
Who ITF copy-edits this shit? Horrible! What a clown!
Clown!
@domi. I have said before, I will give up my platinum pro status, my million miles, my lifetime gold, and the $3500 they are ‘crediting’ me just to see AA go out of business. You don’t know me and you don’t know the experiences that the international travelers have suffered during the mechanics BS, the FA BS, and all of the other BS that comes with trying to fly on AA. 80 year old flight attendants in first from HKG to DFW that were never seen again after serving the wrong meal in first. Lie after lie about connections, cancellations, and anything else where the truth would have been just as good. I pay for business and first and I do expect that value for my money. Waiting an hour in the flagship lounge for a shower when the list hasn’t even moved one person. Try flying on a real international airline and tell me that AA isn’t just scraping by. I realize that back in basic economy the view is jaded, but get over it. My only regret is that I won’t be able to hand any of those furlough papers out to the various so called customer service people who depend upon their union to never have to do anything for the customer or even their employer. I have a million sad stories but you wouldn’t understand them.
@laina, entitled much? All of you FA’s crap is now coming back on you and the flying public doesn’t appear to be anymore distressed about it than your employers are. If you don’t like those conditions in the workplace, then find another job rather than take it out on people that just wanted to get the meal they ordered or a drink with their meal. I can’t even imagine what it is like in the back of the place, I guess you have lack of expectation in your favor there. If you ask me, AA is being too generous with my tax money by carrying you for so long.
I saw that Icelandair fired all of their FA’s, and pilots are handling the safety functions. In my opinion that would be an improvement. At least my expectations wouldn’t be dashed.
You AA employees deserve everything that is happening to you. Well, all except on ticket agent in Tulsa, Sammy. The rest of you should decide if this is the right career for you and if yes, then take an international flight on an asian airline and learn something about customer service with a smile. Unfortunately for FA’s looking for a new career, most of the restaurants are failing as well.
@mark johnson is the man!!!
United sent me a form trying to get me to retire. It said “United will be forever grateful if you retire.” No kidding!
I’ve been an AA FA for 34 years. I was never grumpy, am not grumpy now, and from my experience year in and year out, can say unequivocally that grumpiness is spread out equally among all age brackets. This is not the first time this blog (and its comments section) has advocated for younger vs older flight attendants under the false pretense that senior people are lazy, unhappy, inattentive whatever blah blah. It’s total BS. I’m 54 and will be flying until I’m 67. And every time I head to the airport between now and then, I’ll leave home with a smile on my face knowing I have the best job in the world. And once I’m on the plane, continue to do everything within my power — with what little left I have at my disposal— to make people feel comfortable and welcome. Because that’s who I am. It’s who we all are, save for a few bad apples from any given generation. So on behalf of the many thousands of senior flight attendants who, by and large all feel that way (and can arguably run circles around any new hire), I’m here to tell you how ridiculous you all sound. Really — just knock it off. You should be ashamed of yourselves. All of you.
Mr Leff,
I would like to add a thought to your article. I am Kathy Wiltsie who wrote earlier today. As a flight attendant for AA, I will say that there seems to be a real hesitation amongst those who are contemplating this current buyout. Their lack of trust is causing hesitation. They are very aware of our plight in the first covid related buyout.
Interesting to see all the outrage in the comments. You only have to fly other airlines to see that the difference is night and day, especially when you compare the environment on ex-US carriers. AA has earned every bit of its reputation for having jaded, grumpy employees (not just FAs but many ground staff/lounge personnel). Who wouldn’t be grumpy under the current management?
I am a current 30 yr employee at MIA. I can unequivocally tell you I love my job. While MIA is notorious for rudeness and abrutness I always have a smile because it’s who I am. Neither a rude passenger or an inept manager or grumpy colleague is going to change that. I CHOOSE to be happy and I choose to share my smile with each and every person I come in contact with.
American has helped me raise my son, purchase a home and several cars over the years. It has given me a built in family and it has literally put the world at my feet. I am incredibly blessed and have this job to thank for it. I plan on leaving American when I’m good and ready.
Come by the First Class ticket counter at MIA and let me show you how a passenger should be taken care of. If you need a smile, you can have mine.
Not to worry, I have plenty to go around.