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UA employees shocked: (qtrly performance) Bonuses replaced with lottery (on "pause")

Old Mar 5, 2018, 1:08 pm
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Update 5 March 2018 per Chicago Tribune (and confirmed by internal employee memo
United walks back new bonus lottery system that angered employees
United Airlines on Monday reversed plans to begin awarding bonuses through a lottery system that angered employees.

Scott Kirby, president of the Chicago-based airline, said United was pressing the pause button on changes that would have handed out larger bonuses to only a fraction of its workers after hearing employees feedback since announcing the changes late last week.

Per Chicago Business Journal, 2 March 2018
​​​​​​​United Airlines employees shocked: Bonuses replaced with lottery

United Airlines President Scott Kirby sent shock waves through the employee ranks at the Chicago-based airline today.

Kirby issued an employee memo in which he announced that the Chicago-based airline is dropping the quarterly performance bonuses the carrier had been giving out to all employees qualified to receive them.

Kirby said in the memo, obtained by the Chicago Business Journal, that the bonus payouts are being replaced with a new program called "core4 Score Rewards," which Kirby said would include quarterly prizes like cash ranging from $2,000 to $40,000, luxury cars, vacation packages, and a grand of prize of $100,000 awarded to one eligible employee per quarter.
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UA employees shocked: (qtrly performance) Bonuses replaced with lottery (on "pause")

Old Mar 2, 2018, 9:41 pm
  #46  
 
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Originally Posted by jashsu
Scenario A: Employees A, B, C, D, and E all get $100 bonus. Scenario B: Employee E randomly gets a $500 bonus and the rest get nothing. Which scenario do you think is going to cause more bitterness and discontentment?
a company I worked for in Texas had the option of putting an even amount each into a pool from your bonus and then 3 winners would be drawn from a hat to share in the pot equally

this was capped on $100 on a $1000 bonus, almost everyone participated but got 90% of their bonus and choose to play or not and get 100% of the bonus

so if 40 people played you win $1333 but 37 people did not win

it was fun and not forced
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Old Mar 2, 2018, 9:49 pm
  #47  
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Unfortunately it looks like Oscar, who made some pretty strong promises about a year or so ago, has vanished from the scene (no, offering an umbrella in the safety video doesn't count) and absconded his responsibilities and leadership to someone who is well known for his disdain for both customers and employees, one corner of the infamous trio-of-hell from US/HP - Baldanza, Parker and Kirby. If Oscar isn't going to step forward and start leading again, then not only should Kirby be shown the door, but it's time for Oscar to leave as well. Only complete idiots, many of whom sit on the UA board, would think a service business is run for metrics and not for customers.
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Old Mar 2, 2018, 9:52 pm
  #48  
 
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OMG. If there were a better way to demoralize employees, I don’t know what it would be. This is like the Hunger Games.
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Old Mar 2, 2018, 10:02 pm
  #49  
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Originally Posted by sfolawyer
OMG. If there were a better way to demoralize employees, I dont know what it would be. This is like the Hunger Games.
Right idea, wrong format. It's actually... Scott Kirby IS Brian-Doyle Murray AS Clark's Boss IN National Lampoon's United Vacation! Employees who do not win one of the bigger prizes will be automatically enrolled in the Jelly of the Month Club -- it's the gift that keeps on giving the whole year.
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Old Mar 2, 2018, 10:17 pm
  #50  
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Originally Posted by sfolawyer
OMG. If there were a better way to demoralize employees, I dont know what it would be. This is like the Hunger Games.
It's the clear the goal of this scheme is to turn employees against each other, develop an 'everyone for themselves' culture within the overall goal of improving metrics that benefit Kirby's personal bottom line. The total opposite of how Bethune (or a college sophomore doing a business simulation class) would run this company.
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Old Mar 2, 2018, 11:07 pm
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How out of touch would you need to be to implement this.
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Old Mar 2, 2018, 11:44 pm
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I really don't like the concept. Performance should be the key.
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Old Mar 3, 2018, 1:34 am
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Wow sounds like United is not only screwing over their customers, but their employees now as well.
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Old Mar 3, 2018, 5:05 am
  #54  
 
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Originally Posted by jr0ck
Wow sounds like United is not only screwing over their customers, but their employees now as well.
(emphasis mine) There's no "now" about it.

The only thing positive about this is that if it goes with the speed of the Polaris rollout or the Denver catering, it will never happen.
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Old Mar 3, 2018, 5:09 am
  #55  
 
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Originally Posted by bocastephen
It's the clear the goal of this scheme is to turn employees against each other, develop an 'everyone for themselves' culture within the overall goal of improving metrics that benefit Kirby's personal bottom line. The total opposite of how Bethune (or a college sophomore doing a business simulation class) would run this company.

This is one of the most disjointed from reality things I've read here in quite some time. It's, like, fact, right?

Originally Posted by jr0ck
Wow sounds like United is not only screwing over their customers, but their employees now as well.
United just gave their employees large raises. Industry leading wages.
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Old Mar 3, 2018, 5:37 am
  #56  
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Originally Posted by tuolumne
...
United just gave their employees large raises. Industry leading wages.
United didn't "give" anything. They negotiated terms with their organized labor groups.
And have now fomented worse relations, ensuring future negotiations will be "industry leading" adversarial.
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Old Mar 3, 2018, 6:02 am
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Originally Posted by tuolumne



This is one of the most disjointed from reality things I've read here in quite some time. It's, like, fact, right?



United just gave their employees large raises. Industry leading wages.
United didnt like how those negotiations went and this is how they show their displeasure

this will make service even worse.
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Old Mar 3, 2018, 6:21 am
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I dont really like the sound of this program, but one thing is certain... airline employees hate change, of any sort.
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Old Mar 3, 2018, 6:46 am
  #59  
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I can't say I'm really surprised by this. And it's also just another reason for me to choose to not to fly with United if at all possible.

It's also been quite awhile since I did fly with UA and, BTW, the last time I did so (IAD to SFO in F on a 772) the service was excellent.
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Old Mar 3, 2018, 6:55 am
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A United spokeswoman had this to say late today about the changes: "We announced a new internal program based on United meeting certain operational and dependability metrics as a way of offering meaningful rewards to our employees. We believe that this new program will build excitement and a sense of accomplishment as we continue to set all-time operational records that result in an experience that our customers value."
A "sense of accomplishment"? Reminds me of Electronic Arts' PR disaster a few months ago.
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