I’d Gladly Eat At This Restaurant During The Global Pandemic

by Gary Leff

May 10 2020

Restaurants in Texas were permitted to re-open under new strict guidelines just over a week ago. Indoor spaces are limited to 25% of their previous capacity. Menus are single use only. Condiments cannot be left on the table, but provided only on request. Flatware cannot be pre-placed on tables either and instead must be given to each guest after being seated.

Still, I haven’t dined in at any restaurants yet. There’s one restaurant, however, with a concept that makes me feel safe.

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Airline Lobbyists Changed Bailout Language To Create Loophole That Let Them Reduce Employee Pay

by Gary Leff

May 09 2020

Despite taking CARES Act payroll protection subsidies from the federal government, airlines including Delta, United, and JetBlue have cut worker hours. This means that employees receive less pay, and airlines spend less on payroll, despite requirements not to furlough workers or reduce rates of pay through September 30.

American Airlines CEO Doug Parker said “I was there when we were working on CARES and that wasn’t the intent or meaning of it.” Parker is right, that wasn’t how the CARES Act was supposed to work. The original language – that got changed – has now been leaked.

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The Administration Wants the CDC To Do Temperature Checks At Airports. The CDC Said No.

by Gary Leff

May 09 2020

The executive branch wants to give the CDC a mission: checking temperatures of airline passengers at 20 airports. The CDC, though, declined saying it wasn’t likely to be effective (due to asymptomatic spread) and it may not be legal. They responded to the Department of Homeland Security “Please kindly strike out CDC from this role.”

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Qatar Airways Firing Pilots – And Sending Them A Bill

by Gary Leff

May 09 2020

Here’s a dismissal notice one pilot reported receiving from their airline. Qatar Airways terminated them effective immediately, and is paying seven days of severance in lieu of notice.

If that was the end of the story it would be unfortunate, but part of the grim reality that aviation and the world are facing today. However that wasn’t the end. Qatar sent the pilot a bill for $162,000.

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The Goldilocks Approach to the Best Credit Card Rewards

by Gary Leff

wallet
May 09 2020

I have a wallet chock full of cards. I have a card for each kind of spending. I want to earn 5 points per dollar on my airfare, 4 points at restaurants and supermarkets, 5 points at office supply stores, etc. I also have a huge stack of annual fees, that only make sense if I’m getting a lot of value out of each card and spending a lot of money in each category I’m maximizing.

For most people the 10 credit cards in my wallet is too many. And that doesn’t count the cards in my desk drawer.

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American Airlines CEO: We Don’t Match Low Fares, Will Charge People More Who Must Travel

by Gary Leff

american plane
May 09 2020

This past week American Airlines CEO Doug Parker hosted a Crew News question and answer session with employees. He’s been doing town hall-style employee chats since he was CEO at America West and this was the first one done virtually. Instead of live questions, he had an executive who framed ‘frequently asked questions’ from pilots, and separately from flight attendants.

In the flight attendant session Parker laid out American’s philosophy on pricing which is that they will match low fares in the market, but they will not lead discounting. And he explained they won’t even always match fares anyway – because the people who have been traveling recently are the ones who need to regardless of the fare.

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