AF staff vote down pay deal. Janaillac resigns. Benjamin Smith new CEO
May 7, 2018, 8:32 am
#17
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May 7, 2018, 9:26 am
#18
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May 7, 2018, 9:48 am
#19
Join Date: May 2018
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Would the employees go back and now accept the offer that they've rejected? It would seem like the smart thing to do, since the airline truly has been financially harmed by the strikes and I can't see the employees getting a better deal now. They haven't announced any strikes beyond the 7th and 8th, so perhaps the employees will reconsider.
May 7, 2018, 10:24 am
#20
Join Date: May 2015
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Being an old fart , I remember AF 30 or 40 years ago and they were bloody good back then .
Mind you the same could have been said of Sabena and Swissair at that time, and we know what happened to them .
May 7, 2018, 11:03 am
#21
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May 7, 2018, 11:11 am
#22
Join Date: May 2018
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And why would they? They've just achieved what they had been aiming for i.e. disruption leading to publicity and attention from the wider audience plus, above all, they showed who's really in charge, which sets a particularly treacherous precedent for the business as a whole.
G
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May 7, 2018, 9:37 pm
#24
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Sad indeed. As I said in the strike thread, Mr Janaillac made a similar mistake to the one Mrs Clinton made: he thought he would win because he is on the side of common sense. It seems that when people have been frustrated for many years, rightly or not, they think differently and fight back when they can.
I think it is an illustration of the fact that thinking cannot be just based on cold facts, perception is key and the balance of power should not be mis-understood.
This will be interesting, although quite scary.
I think it is an illustration of the fact that thinking cannot be just based on cold facts, perception is key and the balance of power should not be mis-understood.
This will be interesting, although quite scary.
May 7, 2018, 9:42 pm
#25
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If it were me, AF would simply withdraw the last offer they had on the table as it has been turned down by unions and staff vote, and return to their original (less attractive) plan.
May 8, 2018, 12:19 am
#26
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What they do not see is that the profitability of the group was driven to a large extent by KLM, which means that KLM's profits would pay for AF staff salary increaes; load factors are high but that is because prices have gone done and RASM is under pressure; there is inflation but where does it say that some professions - among them airline staff - have to realize that there is a loss in real wages to account for the new reality of the industry; moving salaries up to previous levels would be the wrong thing to do, wages were too high and needed to go down and *stay* lower than before. And those that do understand that the company's finances are weakened may believe that the state will come to the rescue (see one of the messages further upthread).
The level of understanding of basic economics and business is scaringly low in France, and in combination with the "I am owed a life" mentality that many people still have one way or another (even if less so than before, but still) creates unrealistic demands.
May 8, 2018, 2:07 am
#27
Join Date: Dec 2016
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I am not sure that they see it that way. What many of them see: the airline is profitable so there is money to distribute, load factors are high so the airline is flourishing, there is inflation in France and therefore they are owed an increase, their salary grid has been frozen and must catch up to old levels now that the company is profitable again.
What they do not see is that the profitability of the group was driven to a large extent by KLM, which means that KLM's profits would pay for AF staff salary increaes; load factors are high but that is because prices have gone done and RASM is under pressure; there is inflation but where does it say that some professions - among them airline staff - have to realize that there is a loss in real wages to account for the new reality of the industry; moving salaries up to previous levels would be the wrong thing to do, wages were too high and needed to go down and *stay* lower than before. And those that do understand that the company's finances are weakened may believe that the state will come to the rescue (see one of the messages further upthread).
The level of understanding of basic economics and business is scaringly low in France, and in combination with the "I am owed a life" mentality that many people still have one way or another (even if less so than before, but still) creates unrealistic demands.
What they do not see is that the profitability of the group was driven to a large extent by KLM, which means that KLM's profits would pay for AF staff salary increaes; load factors are high but that is because prices have gone done and RASM is under pressure; there is inflation but where does it say that some professions - among them airline staff - have to realize that there is a loss in real wages to account for the new reality of the industry; moving salaries up to previous levels would be the wrong thing to do, wages were too high and needed to go down and *stay* lower than before. And those that do understand that the company's finances are weakened may believe that the state will come to the rescue (see one of the messages further upthread).
The level of understanding of basic economics and business is scaringly low in France, and in combination with the "I am owed a life" mentality that many people still have one way or another (even if less so than before, but still) creates unrealistic demands.
However, when this madness continues and AF collapses, then KLM pays the price eventually.
May 8, 2018, 3:05 am
#28
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Whilst KL may not be paying directly for the AF madness, the unions are quite irrationally looking at the group results, and not at the AF results.
May 8, 2018, 4:07 am
#29
Join Date: Dec 2016
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I am actually curious what arguments those unions really have to justify these strikes while they are paid more than average in the business, the company isn't doing well and they reject a very generous offer?
May 8, 2018, 4:10 am
#30
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