US AIRWAYS FAN
Jul 31, 04, 6:05 am
Here is the direct link to the article as well:
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/04213/354531.stm
Saturday, July 31, 2004
By Dan Fitzpatrick, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
US Airways Chief Executive Officer Bruce Lakefield, who excoriated unions Tuesday for "dragging their feet" on a new round of contract talks, shifted the tone of his rhetoric yesterday, praising employees for helping the company record a $34 million profit in the recently completed second quarter.
Bruce Lakefield
"Despite our financial challenges," he said in a telephone message to the company's 28,000 employees, "I want to be absolutely clear that I recognize that much of the credit for our profit in the second quarter belongs to you, for the sacrifices that you are making and the hard work you are performing each and every day. ... I have not lost sight of the fact that as a company we are doing a whole lot of things right."
The message was a dramatic departure from the stern rhetoric of the last two weeks, when the normally genial Lakefield cranked up the pressure on the company's labor groups, asking them to move quickly to cooperate with the airline as it rushes to cut $800 million in labor costs and $1.5 billion in total costs by the end of September. Failing at that means a possible default on $726 million in federally backed loans that allowed US Airways to emerge from bankruptcy last year.
Some union members recoiled at Lakefield's tough talk, pointing out that their CEO was too willing to downplay the company's financial performance in the second quarter, a period that saw US Airways posting a larger-than-expected $34 million profit while most other carriers lost money.
Yesterday, like a parent who is firm with his children one day and gentle the next, Lakefield sweetened his weekly message with compliments, citing the company's larger traffic counts, more crowded planes, higher revenues, improvements in on-time performance, new low fares and increased service to Europe and the Caribbean.
In Philadelphia, where low-fare rival Southwest Airlines is now competing for its business, US Airways filled 85.2 percent of its planes in June. What's more, the carrier's $34 million second-quarter profit beat out every US Airways competitor except Southwest.
"All I can say is outstanding, a really great job," Lakefield said. "Thank you for your continued hard work. These are accomplishments for which we can all can be proud, you more than me, since you are the reason for the successes. Knowing how far this company has come, how hard you have worked, and what the company has meant to the communities it has served over the years, it would be nothing short of a travesty to fail."
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/04213/354531.stm
Saturday, July 31, 2004
By Dan Fitzpatrick, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
US Airways Chief Executive Officer Bruce Lakefield, who excoriated unions Tuesday for "dragging their feet" on a new round of contract talks, shifted the tone of his rhetoric yesterday, praising employees for helping the company record a $34 million profit in the recently completed second quarter.
Bruce Lakefield
"Despite our financial challenges," he said in a telephone message to the company's 28,000 employees, "I want to be absolutely clear that I recognize that much of the credit for our profit in the second quarter belongs to you, for the sacrifices that you are making and the hard work you are performing each and every day. ... I have not lost sight of the fact that as a company we are doing a whole lot of things right."
The message was a dramatic departure from the stern rhetoric of the last two weeks, when the normally genial Lakefield cranked up the pressure on the company's labor groups, asking them to move quickly to cooperate with the airline as it rushes to cut $800 million in labor costs and $1.5 billion in total costs by the end of September. Failing at that means a possible default on $726 million in federally backed loans that allowed US Airways to emerge from bankruptcy last year.
Some union members recoiled at Lakefield's tough talk, pointing out that their CEO was too willing to downplay the company's financial performance in the second quarter, a period that saw US Airways posting a larger-than-expected $34 million profit while most other carriers lost money.
Yesterday, like a parent who is firm with his children one day and gentle the next, Lakefield sweetened his weekly message with compliments, citing the company's larger traffic counts, more crowded planes, higher revenues, improvements in on-time performance, new low fares and increased service to Europe and the Caribbean.
In Philadelphia, where low-fare rival Southwest Airlines is now competing for its business, US Airways filled 85.2 percent of its planes in June. What's more, the carrier's $34 million second-quarter profit beat out every US Airways competitor except Southwest.
"All I can say is outstanding, a really great job," Lakefield said. "Thank you for your continued hard work. These are accomplishments for which we can all can be proud, you more than me, since you are the reason for the successes. Knowing how far this company has come, how hard you have worked, and what the company has meant to the communities it has served over the years, it would be nothing short of a travesty to fail."