The OLOG relationship with its Air Log pilots is downright adversarial....witness the recent CBA negotiations (if you can define what happened as being negotiation). As long as that kind of attitude exists then there shall continue to be problems in the work environment that deprives the company of the goodwill and loyalty of those out there representing the firm. Maybe it really does not matter in this day and time but at one time it was considered important to have a workforce that lived, breathed, and acted in company colours....knowing that it was appreciated by the customer.
The attitude that prevails at Air Log now is not very healthy for the company in the long run as I see it. It sounds as though the OLOG bunch figured out they knew less about the North Sea than they thought and have released the reins a bit. They certainly have not proven themselves to be very capable after missing so many contracts over the years and have only just now begun to win a few.
I can understand the need to control costs, operate at a minimum manning level, and all that...what I cannot understand is why senior management fail to understand the abstract part of business. The numbers part seems to be a mechanical exercise....certain definable procedures and practices yield measureable results. Thus the business side of business (if you will) is straight forward. The "Human" side is where most modern day managers fall flat on their face. The advent of HR departments have been an evil thing in my view. Used to be you dealt with a pilot when applying for a pilots job....he knew the business...he knew pilots....and he could be effective in communicating the job requirements and at the same time do a reasonable job of assessing your fitness for the job in question and your mettle for being what the firm wanted. Not so today....some bimbo with a degree in HR, who knows nothing about the work or what it requires to get the job done, passes judgement on your fitness. You ask them question...they bat their eyelashes at you....babble the company line about how great the outfit is...how lucky you are to be considered....but does not understand or know anything about the work of the company beyond what is printed on her script.
The major complaint I hear from other pilots anymore is not about money although that is an issue, or about safety which is also an issue, but more importantly....the fact they feel like they are not allowed or welcomed to be involved in decisions or changes to policy and procedures that have a direct affect on the way they have to work. The current management attitude of dictating to professionals by those not qualified to do the work being "managed" is counter-productive. When people are involved in something....they develop a committment to it.
Years ago at an Air Methods annual training session this very discussion took place....one of the pilots from the Grand Junction base took the floor and downright begged the corporate boys to utilize the collective talent encumbent within the ranks of the pilots employed by the company. He suggested that despite the pilots being scattered all over the country that by means of the internet, fax, and telephone....there were ways for the combined experience of all the pilots to be tapped by corporate and thus a better situation for all would exist. He was discounted out of hand by the corporate boys. That situation still exists today....they have a union now....they have 25 vacant pilot positions....and they have some very unhappy pilots still.
Life is not perfect and people are not perfect....for sure helicopter operator managers are not perfect. Not withstanding that, until an operator can find a way to have a "personal touch" with the folks that get out there and make it happen....starting with the folks that clean the toilets right up to the folks that sit at the table with the Board of Directors....this industry is going to remain a bad industry to work in. The few places that do get it right will not only prosper business-wise but also be enjoyable places to work and thus will have little turnover which in itself will boost the bottomline profit number.