pigx5

I agree with you.
I like the 1K voice (Customer Relations) before.
The problem always been solved within few days (I am not talking about
compensation). Now, I don't know how long can I get reply.
What is "service"? Ignore problem and not listen to customers?
I do wish the service will become better......

mduell

He's got the right idea, but I think he's completely delusional if he thinks he's going to achieve it with either PM FA group.

channa

That's my take as well from talking with UA staff.

Initially, when the merger was closed, they were hopeful. Now there has been a marked deterioration in their hope.

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cricketer

My primary international routes are SFO-LHR and back, and SFO-SIN and back (via both NRT and HKG). Over the last 3 years, perhaps slightly more, the *worst* service I've encountered in C on those routes has been good, and more often than not it's been excellent or exceptional - to the point where I connect to an SQ flight and still think that UA is right up there.

My domestic experiences have been a little more hit or miss, but even then while I've not had as much outstanding service, I still haven't experienced much, if any, poor service.

So for my money/experience, UA has been on the right track for the last few years in this regard, and long may it continue.

+1 to getting rid of the trays for premium cabin int'l meals though!

UAL awesome

Glenn Tilton was also popular in the first few years of his tenure. It was the canning of pensions in 2005 that really started the anti-Tilton bregade. $mi$ek will find himself in that position or even worse in time. The glamour of not having Tilton around hasn't completely worn off. Charlie Sheen could be the new CEO and they'd be "hopeful", too, because Tilton was hated so much.

FreequentFlier

Tilton really had no choice with the pensions unfortunately. It was pretty much default on the pensions or the whole ship went down. Not exactly a favorable position to be in for anyone.

And it remains to be seen how Smisek stacks up against Tilton.

eponymous_coward

If UA employees are consistently getting profit-sharing checks in the years to come, while the performance numbers stay up (leading to more $$$), I don't see them turning on their leadership. Cash and a well-run business go a long way to making employees happy.

UAL awesome

I'm not saying it didn't need to be done and I think Glenn didn't get the credit he deserved in a lot of things, but it still did nothing but damage their view on him.

Many CO employees do not like Smisek and didn't before the merger. He's new to the UA employees so they have no prior history with him, but give it time.

The frontline employees at United have been getting profit sharing checks for on-time performance for the last two years, yet the view on management never really changed.

fastair

No way, from day #1 (or close to it) he made his stance clear. It wasn't like he was the 1st choice to take the job, but no one with the credentials and experience in the industry would touch the top job at UA with a 10 foot pole. Any of the informed employees knew that his style was straight out of the Jack Welsh book. Both Jack and Glenn did what their legal requirements required them to do, to think of shareholder investments first and all else comes at that expense. It is what the law requires in that job.

eponymous_coward

They've been getting performance bonuses for the last couple years, but not profit-sharing, because UA had no full year profit to share with employees in 2009. 2010 was the first profitable year since 2007, from what I can tell.

808 Flyer

Thank you OP for posting the summary. It is interesting to hear what the focus is for UACO moving forward. Personally, it is good to hear that it is service. UA has a proud tradition, and many good FAs who get pulled down by the bad apples. They need to come with a way to eliminate those FAs who do not want to focus on service.

ptc8329

I have to say that in my overwhelming experiences (including 150k of international miles last year) I have had extremely positive experiences. Occasionally, I have run into an "average" crew but nothing worse than BA or any other airline out there. I once flew on Delta in first and was completely underwhelmed by the very lazy and poor service. However, it is disheartening to always come on here and see the UA board devolve into a trashing of the airline. What is striking is that people on the DL, AA and CO boards are almost always positive about their airlines. Even when the do something basic, they are applauded, but in here, United can do something good and immediately it turns into a bashing for all of the other things they fail to do.

I understand that this site is about voicing opinions and getting various perspectives. This basic foundation is what attracted me to it in the first place and keeps me coming back, but honestly, I don't understand how a group of repeat flyers could constantly have such horrible experiences. I guess the adage applies - "first time, shame on them, second time, shame on you". As the FAs say upon landing, "you have a choice in airlines". Vote with your wallets.....

SaveTheTulip

+1

Thank you for saying what few posters have the guts to say. The material on this site is one-third substantive (which is marvelous since finding out information from United is like waiting for white smoke after a pope dies), one-third rumor (which can be very helpful), and one-third opinion, and the opinion third regularly finds a way to devolve into excoriating United's service in some petty form or another (e.g., "the gate agent handed me my boarding pass in a brusque way. I want something for my troubles!") or blasting some policy that we don't like, e.g., the livery/logo change or problems with ual.com. I don't want to be trite and compare the situation of premium passengers who keep complaining but keep flying United to battered wife syndrome, but United's elite flyers keep coming back because they know they couldn't have it better on another domestic airline. (I mean, come on, unlimited domestic upgrades? really? those are totally undeserved.) A good chunk of the elites who post on here post comments that are oftentimes little more than whining. Here's a tip to posters, advice taken from the words of Elwood Blues, "Try not to be so negative all the time. Why don't you offer a little... constructive criticism?"

BearX220

... and that's why Smisek cannot succeed, and New UA won't change appreciably no matter what he does. The UA rank-and-file are like federal bureaucrats and Smisek's just another president. They were wrecking the company before he showed up, and they'll be wrecking the company long after he's cashiered.

It's laughable to imagine F ticket buyers (not upgraders) ever choosing UA over foreign competitors with proper service culture.

UA-NYC

Can't help but shake my head at the juxtaposition of these two posts