A baggage handler pushes a bag close to a Southwest Airways airplane at Hollywood Burbank Airport in Burbank, California, October 10, 2021.
Robyn Beck | AFP | Getty Pictures
Southwest Airways on Saturday supplied its flight attendants new incentives geared toward avoiding extra flight cancellations, notably over the height vacation interval, amid issues over staffing, in response to an inside memo.
Southwest canceled greater than 2,000 flights round Columbus Day weekend, disruptions the air service stated value it $75 million. American Airways, which can also be providing flight attendants and different crews additional pay for vacation shifts, struggled with mass flight cancellations late final month and in early November as nicely.
Flight attendants, pilots and different operations workers might obtain as much as 120,000 Fast Rewards factors, valued at greater than $1,400. Flight attendants are eligible for working 36 days between Nov. 15 and Jan. 14, whereas cabin crews who work 28 days over that interval might get 60,000 factors, the observe said. Southwest stated that the variety of qualifying shifts or days varies by work group.
The variety of no-shows or unreachable flight attendants has been elevated just lately, Southwest’s vp of Sonya Lacore, vp of inflight operations, stated in her observe to cabin crews, which was reviewed by CNBC. Sick calls have surged as nicely when the corporate has lifted emergency insurance policies that required flight attendants to indicate a physician’s observe if calling out in poor health. For instance, Lacore stated when the airline final lifted these procedures on Nov. 9 sick calls went from 20 an hour to 90 an hour for 2 hours in a row.
“We’ve got an ideal alternative right here to uphold that dedication to them, and also you, within the midst of what has been a tough time for us all,” wrote Lacore. “Our first step in addressing this, and actively working to guard the operation, was to cut back the schedule, and we consider this incentive program will take us one other step in the best course.”
The airline can also be providing as a lot as triple pay to floor operations workers for working Thanksgiving and Christmas and double pay for time beyond regulation shifts between Nov. 17 via Nov. 30 and Dec. 17 via Jan. 3, up from time-and-a-half pay.
Airways had supplied employees early retirement packages and leaves of absence to chop their labor payments through the pandemic however discovered themselves short-staffed when demand bounced again this 12 months. Extra flight attendants are returning to American and Southwest from depart, whereas these airways and others are additionally aggressively hiring.