awaflyboy

An email sent out today:


Staffing Adjustments: An Important Message from COO Robert Isom
September 1, 2011

Dear Fellow Employees,

I am writing today to share some news about Airport Customer Service (ACS) staffing changes that are being made in the coming months.

Throughout the year, we adjust flying to best allocate our resources, creating changes in the staffing needed to handle our schedule. As part of a recent schedule adjustment, beginning this fall we will no longer be offering point-to-point service from Las Vegas to Boston, Dallas, Fresno, Calif., Los Angeles and San Francisco. The majority of the Las Vegas flight schedule adjustments will occur in late November with the remaining minor adjustments completed by January. When complete, the number of flights to/from Las Vegas will be reduced from 35 to 21 daily departures.

We will also be discontinuing the handling of ramp function by mainline employees in Albuquerque, N.M. and Manchester, N.H. this fall, followed by Indianapolis; New Orleans, La.; Buffalo, N.Y.; Oakland, Calif. and Orange County, Calif. in January.

As a direct result of the discontinuance of some point-to-point service and changes in ramp handling in seven cities we will be reducing approximately 31 airport customer service and 250 fleet service employees in the cities affected. At this time there are enough openings in the system for those that are able to relocate. In fact, this December we will be in-sourcing the ramp function in Atlanta, creating an additional 40 open positions as a result of increased mainline departures. Those that do take furlough status will be provided with transition benefits as explained in their collective bargaining agreement.

Decisions to reduce staffing never come lightly, but are a reality of the industry we operate in and the broader economic environment of the country. We must constantly be on the lookout for ways to be more productive and reduce costs – and that means taking steps like these to ensure the survival of our company and stable employment for more than 32,000 employees. We simply do not have the luxury to carry resources that are excess to what we need or cost more than our competitors.

We are working to minimize the impact this action imposes on our colleagues. Meetings are being held at the affected stations and employees will receive options as outlined in their collective bargaining agreements. Company representatives will also be on hand in the coming days to provide more information.

I ask that we all continue to focus on the operation and providing the level of service our customers enjoy. I thank each of you for your continued contributions and support.

Sincerely,
Robert

eponymous_coward

So, this completes the LAS de-hubbing.

Too bad. This basically eliminates any possible use I have for US as an airline. I don't fly to PHX, CLT or PHL, and they suck as connecting hubs for someone like me based on the West Coast.

dcpatti

Yeah very sad to see them give up on LAS although it's not a surprising move till the economy there recovers. I really miss YVR-LAS-DCA, for some reason it was always less painful than YVR-PHX-DCA. I hope that those who are being cut are able to relocate or can find good work easily, but in cities like LAS and MSY there are slim pickings on jobs. Sad all around.

HereAndThereSC

There really isn't enough demand for LAX-LAS and SFO-LAS???

HTSC

USFlyer26

AA, CO/UA, WN, B6 (BUR & LGB), NK, and VX all serve one of or both of these routes.

Crappy for all of the US employees being furloughed or displaced, though.

bwiadca

You have other airlines flying this route:
American Airlines
Delta Air Lines
United Airlines
Spirit Airlines
Allegiant Air
Southwest

Thats just direct competition on LAX/SFO out of LAS. Add nearby airports in the LA SF area and you will see that there is more seats than demand.

masonuc

My guess is they are competing with too many airlines on those routes. Meanwhile they don't have nearly enough LAS flights going east, it's absurd. Any they keep cutting (just cut back on Vegas redeye schedule in fall and winter). Let me tell you, every Vegas flight going east is jam packed. Vegas hotel rooms are cheap as dirt. US is the only airline cutting schedules from Vegas, it's absurd. They are throwing money away.

CMK10

This is sad. Not just that LAS departures will number a pitiful 21 but that mainline ramp employees will be gone from IND, a former hub/focus city.

To think two years ago people on this forum were complaining that LAS-SNA went from 319s/320s to CR9s

jfinsocal

Looks like US wins in PHL and WN wins in LAS. Results will be higher fares; SAN-LAS round trip is already ~$300 Wanna Get Away and ~$375 Anytime for weekend trips. Similar price to many transcons for a 1 hr. flight. Expect WN to ratchet this up even more out of LAX/SFO if they can.

Sad to see the employees let go in LAS - this town is very depressed already. They need to bulldoze entire neighborhoods to reduce the housing supply to match the available jobs. Las Vegas is going to become one big ghetto - much of it already is. Sad.

redheadtempe33

As others have pointed out, there are a gazillion other airlines serving these routes, so the competition must be fierce. I have to admit, I always assumed (perhaps incorrectly) that the SFO/LAX-LAS were kept to maintain feed for the LAS-DCA flight. Guess I was wrong.

If the FAA re-auth bill passes next year (which they are telling us looks good), and US gets LAX/SFO-DCA slots (which maybe not both, but at least one is a good bet), this makes sense.

bwiadca

I used to connect OAK-LAS to catch redeye LAS-DCA. I could have all day at work in OAK and stress free get back home next morning.
I also prefer connecting in LAS versus PHX. Did few times DCA-LAS-SEA. I guess most of these flights will be gone or are gone now.

I just thought about one thing. I did direct flight LAX-LAS-DCA in May of this year. I even asked FA if I have to leave the aircraft to reboard it. And she said that I'm ok
Now LAS will be D in O&D for my travel.

tacostuff

I believe this also has implications at a bunch of other airports as well. For example, from what I understand from a friend, all of MHT ramp services will be let go, and a third party will provide ramp services for all MHT flights. I wonder how many other airports are in the same boat at MHT.

MisterAviator

http://www.vegasinc.com/news/2011/se...vegas-flights/

Wilbur

For HP, the whole Vegas-as-a-hub concept was an exercise in increasing utilization of the aircraft in a time when travel to Sin City was very popular.

The majority of flights aimed at business travel would block out most of the early morning and afternoon time slots and use PHX as their pivot point. Then the fleet would converge on LAS and ferry home the winners, the losers, the drunks and the whores in the middle of the night.

(Having been re-routed on flights through LAS as a result of weather in the 90's and early 00's, let's just say that the clientele sitting in the seats was a shade different from the flights during the day!)

For the new US, there is less utility in creating a large bank of red-eye flights. Compounding that issue is the fact that fares to Vegas command a relatively lower margin today, with more capacity and less demand as the gambling middle class withers.

dcpatti

I wonder who, if anyone, will take over those other gates at LAS? It's always sad to see the entire wing of the terminal gated off.