US AIRWAYS RESERVATIONS CALL AND SERVICE CENTERS
TO BE CONSOLIDATED IN WINSTON-SALEM, N.C.

All Employees to be Offered Positions in the North Carolina Facility



ARLINGTON, Va., Jan.* 26, 2005 -- US Airways announced today that Winston-Salem, N.C., will be the site of its consolidated reservations call and service centers.


In accordance with the Transformation Plan agreement reached with the Communications Workers of America (CWA), the union representing US Airways’ call- and service-center employees, US Airways will consolidate existing facilities, offer all employees the opportunity to transfer with some relocation assistance, and if they choose not to transfer, provide an early-out package consisting of enhanced severance, airline pass travel, extended medical benefits, and professional outplacement and job assistance.


As a result, the company will reassign job functions at its reservations center in Greentree, Pa., its baggage service call center in RIDC Park, Findlay Township, Pa., and Dividend Miles Service Center at Smith-Reynolds Airport in Winston-Salem, to its existing reservations call center on Hanes Mall Boulevard in Winston-Salem.


"During our negotiations with the CWA, the company’s need for cost reductions, and the union’s desire for an early-out incentive program, led to discussion and eventual agreement on a plan that meets our mutual objectives," said Kerry J. Carstairs, US*Airways vice president of direct distribution. "Today’s announcement is consistent with our collective bargaining agreement and as difficult as this decision is, it is a necessary cost-savings initiative and an important step in the successful implementation of US*Airways’ Transformation Plan."


The consolidation will begin in early April and is expected to be completed by the end of the third quarter 2005. The number of employees who will transfer is to be determined. Employees will have 45 days to decide whether or not to take the early out package. Once the program closes, the company will have an additional 30 days to inform employees of when they will be released by the company.


The airline’s Senior Vice President of Corporate Affairs Christopher L. Chiames thanked state and local officials in both North Carolina and Pennsylvania for their efforts in working with
US Airways. "It came down to the fact that our existing facility in Winston-Salem has the space and features necessary for a consolidated center. While both locations offered incentives, the cost-benefit analysis by the company favored retaining the Winston-Salem operation, rather than building and relocating to a new facility in Pittsburgh." Chiames said that with the IAM’s ratification of new labor agreements on Friday, the airline can move forward on plans to keep heavy maintenance operations in both Pittsburgh and Charlotte, and is already in discussions with local officials about the scope of those operations.


US Airways currently has approximately 785 active reservations sales representatives in the Greentree center, approximately 45 employees in the baggage call center at RIDC Park, approximately 110 employees in the Winston-Salem Dividend Miles Service Center, and approximately 850 employees at the 100,000-square-foot Hanes Mall facility in Winston-Salem.
The Forsyth County Board of Commissioners and the Winston-Salem City Council will, respectively, hold public hearings and votes on any incentives for which US Airways qualifies.


Reporters needing additional information should contact US Airways Corporate Affairs at(703) 872-5100.

Another 1000 local jobs down the drain. Oh well. We all knew it was coming, anyway.

In a year, these call center jobs will be in India anyway. Let NC drop their pants for US on this one. Hopefully we can keep the maintenance facility away from Billy Bob in Alabamy. If we're going to get a bone, the maintenance facility is the one to keep.

This is truly dumb. They need more than one call center. What are they going to do when there is a local weather event (look what happened in Raleigh last week with 1 inch of snow)? What will they do if there is a local power failure or computer problem? Dumb, dumb, dumb!

It's well known that NC is an antiunion state versus PA. You won't see it written anywhere, but overall the NC operation probably makes a lower average wage than PA.

The strange part of this is that Winston Salem (former Piedmont stronghold) has no US Airways flights......and GSO basically only has flights to hubs. At least PIT has a few hundred flights per day.

As I said above, call center jobs will be in a low cost, english speaking country before you can say Jack Robinson. ;)

The strange part of this is that Winston Salem (former Piedmont stronghold) has no US Airways flights......and GSO basically only has flights to hubs.



What does this have to do with anything? Best Western Hotels used to have a res center in an Oklahoma Womens' prison. Starwood Hotels has their North American Res center in Austin TX -- where I believe they have only one really crappy Four Points Hotel.

A res center can be A N Y P L A C E -- technology makes the distance very nearly immaterial. One key difference is that this res center is staying in the US (at least for now) so that US callers don't have to fight to understand what is being communicated on the other end of the line.

Apparently the fired phone bank people are being offered $20,000 severance packages.

http://www.justplanenews.com

Apparently the fired phone bank people are being offered $20,000 severance packages.

http://www.justplanenews.com

This isnt news - it was posted a month or so ago when the CWA package was being negotiated and voted on.

Also note the $20k is a max payoff for people that have spent the bulk of their life working there.

This isnt news - it was posted a month or so ago when the CWA package was being negotiated and voted on.

Also note the $20k is a max payoff for people that have spent the bulk of their life working there.

Understood. I stand corrected.

What does this have to do with anything? Best Western Hotels used to have a res center in an Oklahoma Womens' prison. Starwood Hotels has their North American Res center in Austin TX -- where I believe they have only one really crappy Four Points Hotel.

A res center can be A N Y P L A C E -- technology makes the distance very nearly immaterial. One key difference is that this res center is staying in the US (at least for now) so that US callers don't have to fight to understand what is being communicated on the other end of the line.

Obviously, the point was that US has no other presence in Winston Salem except for a legacy of Piedmont. Even without the reservation center in PIT there are US operations in the area. I surmise that the only reason that W-S won out over PIT was because of lower overall wage and operation costs.

I stated above that the call center will wind up in INDIA.......so what's you're issue? :mad:

I surmise that the only reason that W-S won out over PIT was because of lower overall wage and operation costs.



Sorry, I can't let this one go just yet. The wage costs are also immaterial since the CWA operates under contract, remember? This means that if a res agent works in INT or in PIT, the wages are constant assuming all other things (tenure, primarily) are equal.

Both PIT and INT offered significant tax incentives to US to consolidate res operations in their cities. US maintains that while those offers were part of the consideration, the bottom line was that capacity was quite easily available at their existing (and always largest) res office at the Hanes Mall in INT.

End of story. INT is a whopping 13 miles from the GSO airport. There is NO issue here.

Sorry, I can't let this one go just yet. The wage costs are also immaterial since the CWA operates under contract, remember? This means that if a res agent works in INT or in PIT, the wages are constant assuming all other things (tenure, primarily) are equal.

Both PIT and INT offered significant tax incentives to US to consolidate res operations in their cities. US maintains that while those offers were part of the consideration, the bottom line was that capacity was quite easily available at their existing (and always largest) res office at the Hanes Mall in INT.

End of story. INT is a whopping 13 miles from the GSO airport. There is NO issue here.

It's the end of YOUR STORY. Overall costs (please read more carefully) include wages AND OPERATING COSTS. This will be much lower in NC versus PA. It was stated by PA officials that US told PA that there offer would have to be "ten times the NC offer" to keep the center in PIT.

Don't assume that tenure plays no role in wages. The PIT center has many more "senior" employees making the top wage. W-S came into US via Piedmont and ramped up as US grew.

13 miles from GSO means nothing (BTW, I used to live in GSO and am familiar with the geography). US has few operations in W-S and GSO has become an insignificant destination with US. W-S is over 100 miles from CLT, so there is no synergy with the major operations in CLT.

I'm surprised that they don't put the center in ALABAMA to please their major investor. Of course, this is still on the way to Bangalore anyway, so save your concern.

This decision was wired for W-S from the beginning. As has been common practice for US, they negotiated in bad faith with PIT, using them to leverage W-S for more government money.

HTP --

If you're angry about US slapping PIT in the face yet again, then simply state that. I can appreciate that emotion.

Nevertheless, I stand by everything I have posted above as fully factual. I also would suggest that your posts' assertions above have morphed with every successive posting. Each reader may decide for him/herself if you've been consistent.

Lastly, to suggest that the res staff in INT is junior to the overall staff in PIT is, frankly, laughable. That is amazingly incorrect. Res agents maintained seniority at the time of the US/PS/PI merger and all were grandfathered in. INT may well have the most senior res staff of any major airline in North America. As a CP, you should know that those gals you chat with mostly have 30 years or so in with the company. And, they're in INT.

Although I have no personal connection to the state...I take offense to the "Alabamy" comments. Doesn't DaimlerChrysler build their M class vehicles there? I agree with the others, just state your dissatisfaction with U slapping PIT in the face yet again, but no need to disparage everybody else.

You've succeeded in making this mole hill into a mountain. Since you have great difficulty in comprehending the written word, please take this as my last statement on the subject.

HTP --

If you're angry about US slapping PIT in the face yet again, then simply state that. I can appreciate that emotion.

Nevertheless, I stand by everything I have posted above as fully factual. I also would suggest that your posts' assertions above have morphed with every successive posting. Each reader may decide for him/herself if you've been consistent.

Lastly, to suggest that the res staff in INT is junior to the overall staff in PIT is, frankly, laughable. That is amazingly incorrect. Res agents maintained seniority at the time of the US/PS/PI merger and all were grandfathered in. INT may well have the most senior res staff of any major airline in North America. As a CP, you should know that those gals you chat with mostly have 30 years or so in with the company. And, they're in INT.

For your edification, references to Alabamy have more to do with the current management of US having to promote travel (special fares/vacations) and the ridiculous outsourcing of aircraft maintenance to Alabama. The state pension fund of AL has taken a significant bath on it's US investment and is hoping to recover assets in any way possible.

We take jobs from PA and move them to Alabamy (or NC), but why? Of course it is because the company hopes to achieve the same level of production with a lower cost. It's a wonder that the PIT call center jobs weren't moved straight to Alabamy rather than NC.......THAT was my point.

I don't know Billy Bob personally, but he certainly lives and works in Alabamy! :D


Although I have no personal connection to the state...I take offense to the "Alabamy" comments. Doesn't DaimlerChrysler build their M class vehicles there? I agree with the others, just state your dissatisfaction with U slapping PIT in the face yet again, but no need to disparage everybody else.

This is truly dumb. They need more than one call center. What are they going to do when there is a local weather event (look what happened in Raleigh last week with 1 inch of snow)? What will they do if there is a local power failure or computer problem? Dumb, dumb, dumb!

Yeah. I do some of the engineering and planning work for a Fortune 250 on things like this, and would be hung for the "all eggs in one basket" approach on a primary means of customer contact and revenue generation.

OTOH, my firm made almost a billion dollars last year, and we know how US did.

Not only that, but apparently PIT and the state of PA offered nearly double the monetary incentives (3 million versus 1.4). It's for this reason that you see LUV in PHL and PIT--crossing "Fast Eddie" Rendell is a not a real smart move.

In a way it's good for PIT--the workers will get their buyout before US folds, and get retraining assistance over a longer period of time than would happen when US folds.

CluebyFour,


Can you tell us exactly when they are folding? Yes US is not doing so hot at the moment but they have jumped some hurtles lately. Maybe your comments should be more in the IF than when. :rolleyes: If you do have a crystal ball please share with the rest of us.

I am sorry folks but this thread seems to have forgotten one crucial point. US is in its second bankruptcy and must find ways to come out as a profitable LCC. So, if being in Winston-Salem versus Pittsburgh saves a few million, so be it.

My sense with US is that it spent far too many years holding on to its legacy rather than making some tough choices.

It waited far too many years before it move to the Caribbean or to transatlantic flights. Far too too many years of having a pay structure off the chart for an airline its size. Having two hubs in Pennsylvania? Its like American having hubs in Houston and Dallas. Only United iis n a state the size of California can really support two hubs. And it waited too long to start really fighting Southwest and the other LCC. Southwest ran them out of Florida and BWI.

I applaud US for making some sensible and hard choices in trying to bring its self back.

This thread seems to want to continue business as usual until they fold. Doesn't seem like a smart option

To keep this offtopic (as I admittedly am here only for the entertaining sideshow as I try not to fly US) I owned an ML320 that was built in Alabama and had many many problems with it, as did many of its other owners. So if thats a shining example of Alabama quality then they'd better keep looking.

I have nothing against Alabama. They just are up there with West Virginia in the number of jokes the rest of us get to make :)

I don't care where the res center is as long as it is in the Continental US.

If they were really shrewd, US management would move most of the res operation to UT and that would force voluntary attrition amongst a huge number of res agents. They'd have a whole new crew on the bottom of the pay scale.

If they were enlightened they'd shut down all of the res centers and allow agents to work out of their homes. (what better way to reduce costs and promote employee morale!)

However, this is an absolutely, incredibly, mind-blowingly stupid move. When the power goes out, there is another hurricane, OR a foot of snow or ICE, it will effectively shut down the US res center and parts of the airline. This is worth a FFOCUS letter to US management. They need a serious reality check here.

I don't care where the res center is as long as it is in the Continental US.



If we're talking third world countries, why not move it to West Virginia? Isn't that the perception of this state anyway?

WV is a beautiful state, with low crime and a low cost/high quality of living. I wish companies would look past the barefoot/hillbilly perception and look at WV for what it is.

If we're talking third world countries, why not move it to West Virginia? Isn't that the perception of this state anyway?

WV is a beautiful state, with low crime and a low cost/high quality of living. I wish companies would look past the barefoot/hillbilly perception and look at WV for what it is.


Well, Winston-Salem is only a few hours from Bluefield, so that's not TOO bad of a commute... :)

Seriously though, if closing the PIT res center is going to help save the airline, then I am all for it (not convinced that W-S was the better location, but...). The best thing for PIT is Keeping US afloat with its 220+ direct flts per day. No carrier in the near future is going to replace that type of network if US folds. In fact the best case scenario for the region is if US turns into the lean airline it strives to be, maintaining (or slowly increasing) the amount of departures, along with a nice sized Southwest presence to keep 'em honest (say 60-70 flts per day), the area will be very well served (throw in at least one European non-stop per day for good measure).

Add to this the fact that US intends to keep open the maintnenance facilities at PIT (at least for now) and its not such a bad deal for the region, given the circumstances. The O&D should increase quite a bit when Southwest arrives.