American Airlines Plans To Outsource Some Jobs
DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - Tens of thousands of American Airlines employees are on edge, waiting to find out if they will lose their jobs. The airline said Wednesday that it needs to cut 13,000 positions in order to survive, and the plan includes outsourcing some maintenance work.
For years, American Airlines and its unions bragged that they were the only ones to still do most of their own maintenance. Nick Soldevere has been working as an aircraft maintenance crew chief at DFW International Airport. "We do pride ourselves on our maintenance work," he said. But that pride has since turned to fear for Soldevere and thousands of his American Airlines co-workers. "Right now, the level of concern is very high."
After years of doing a majority of its jet maintenance in-house, American Airlines has proposed cutting 4,600 mechanics system-wide, including a complete closure of its heavy maintenance facility at Fort Worth's Alliance Airport. The airline wants to outsource a portion of that work.
Jim Little is the international president of the Transport Workers Union, which represents Soldevere and the other mechanics. "Is that going to drive work overseas? This is not good for American. This is not good for America," Little said. "When we're talking saving jobs -- whether you're a Democrat, a Republican or Independent -- it's jobs, jobs, jobs. And these are high-skilled jobs."
A study by Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida shows that, in 2009, American Airlines had 20 mechanics per aircraft -- far more than any other airline, especially Dallas-based Southwest Airlines.
Bernard Weinstein is an economics professor at SMU in Dallas. He said that American Airlines has no other choice but to cut employees if the company wants to survive. "That's one of the reasons American feels it needs to start outsourcing its maintenance," he said, "because not only are they paying high wages and benefits to these unionized maintenance workers, but they have a lot more -- relative to the size of their fleets -- than the other airlines."
Given his seniority, Soldevere is hoping that his job is safe. But even so, with the airline replacing its pension plan with a 401(k), he said that retiring will be much more difficult. "I don't want to stay working as long as possible, but it looks like I'm not going to have a choice," he said. "It looks like that's the way it's going."
Soldevere and other union members said that they were surprised by the extent of the proposed cuts. And the company's other unions are also trying to protect their members. The Association of Professional Flight Attendants say the average age of their members is 51. They want to start their negotiations by discussing early retirement incentives.
"It would give the flight attendants the option of retiring with the benefits and pensions they earned and deserve," said Laura Glading, the union's president.
Tom Hoban, with the Allied Pilots Association, says it's important to keep in mind that the unions' talks with the airline are negotiations. "You have to take it for what it is," he said of American's opening offer. "It's a bargaining position."
American Airlines said that this is just a starting point. The company is now negotiating with the unions to reach a final agreement. If no agreement is reached, a bankruptcy judge will have the final say.
Also Check Out:
