Fit for the Future
UNITE/ XL Joint Consultation Meeting – 1 held on Tuesday 4 September at 1400
in Explorer House.
Present: (MD)
(In-flight Director)
(Head of Cabin Services)
(Employee Relations Manager)
(UNITE Regional Officer)
(UNITE Rep)
(UNITE Rep)
1. Business Overview
Mr XX opened the meeting by providing the business overview in
relation to the recent Fit for the Future memo from Mr XX.
He described how the popularity of the traditional holiday package deal through
the tour operator market has declined and is continuing to do so. This has hit the
entire airline business. The Group has had to change the way it does its business in
order to match the current market. When the Company was originally set up we
had partnerships with 45 independent tour operators. There are now only about 5
left.
Within the Group 85% of our capacity is controlled internally and we need to do it
right. The product itself needs to be changed and the internet needs to be made
use of more.
The re-branding of the XL product was a key focus for the Company, along with an
investment into our website. The West Ham sponsorship was seen as key to
getting the XL name as much exposure as possible so that customers contacted us
directly. The exposure was far greater than the same amount of spend on normal
PR in papers, advertising, etc.
The Company has had to rationalise its fleet, and change its programme to suit
the current market
The mass competition in the low cost air carrier market is affecting us badly, and
the Company needs to cut many of the 3 hour range holidays as the yield has
decreased. We must now concentrate on the low cost flight areas that are outside
the 3 hour range.
Customers now want dynamic packaging and the structure of the company needs
to be changed in order to respond to our customers’ needs.
The fleet for next year will consist of 13 x 737s and 2 x 767s, and going forward a
leaner fleet consisting of 737s and A330s.
All areas of the business are being looked at and all department heads have been
asked to come up with a plan to facilitate the 20% cost reduction requirements.
Significant resources have been invested in a new IT strategy redefining our
product in every area that will need IT support.
The Company recognises everyone’s concerns but this cost issue does need to be
addressed. The plan is for the exercise to be completed by mid-end November.
2. Introduction from Mr XX - UNITE
Mr xx introduced himself and explained that UNITE has restructured, hence
the change in Regional Officer.
He explained that the role of UNITE is to make sure that they represent their
members effectively by working together with the Company and that there is a
state of apprehension amongst the Cabin Crew at present.
Mr XX stated that UNITE viewed the commencement of the 90 day consultation
period as being today (4 September) however the Company reiterated that an
agreement had already been reached that it commenced on 20 August, the date
that UNITE had first been notified of the situation.
He went on to state the need to involve the internal representatives and the
Company agreed that this was not an issue.
The UNITE standpoint is that LIFO (last in first out) is preferred as an objective
selection criterion and that a skills analysis is not their preferred method. The
Company point of view is that the people with the best skills and abilities should
be retained, therefore would be using the following fair and objective criteria to
select individuals for the various alternatives to redundancy that were on offer and
to select for redundancy.
•
Disciplinary Record
•
Attendance Record
o
Sickness – 1st stage, 2nd stage, 3rd stage
o
Absents
o
No Shows
o
Non Contactables
o
Late Reports
•
Capability, standard of work performance, aptitude, sales
•
Skills
•
Length of service
The Company suggested to UNITE that if they had any suggestions further to the
options that had already been communicated to the Cabin Crew to inform us as
soon as possible .
3. Questions and Answers
Q. How many crew do we have in each rank? Please specify permanent and
temporary crew. Please state figures for each base.
A.
LGW
PSR A/P JNR Total
61.5 52.5 213 327
MAN
PSR A/P JNR Total
32 41.5 165.5 239
BRS - all 100%
PSR A/P JNR Total
5 4 14 23
Temporary – All Juniors
LGW 115 MAN 67 BRS 14
Q. Clarification of bases that will be closed/kept open? What about STN & LCA
returning staff?
A. Bases for W07/08 – LGW, MAN, LCA, BRS
S08 LGW, MAN, LCA, BRS, GLA, DUB, EMA
Q. How many crew will be offered Bangkok/Sunwings contract? Are these
opportunities offered to all crew of all bases?
A. The Bangkok – Nok Air contract will be offered to 36 Pursers on 2 month
secondment
Sunwings at the moment offered to MAN crew. Figures to be confirmed by
Sunwing
Q. Did all bases get the letter regarding the options to avoid compulsories?
Did all get the same options? What about other bases like Dublin, Larnaca,
XL France & XL Germany?
A. No all bases did not receive the letter. MAN received an extra option of the
Sunwing contract.
Q. When will the redundancies and the other options come into effect?
A. Post 90 days consultation
Q. Departure dates for the 747, 767-200s and 757s?
A. B747 AME 12November 2007
AMJ 11November 2007
ASI operation 03October 2007
B762 01November 07
B757 NA 05September 07
ND 01November 07
Q. Airbus Arrival and Training Dates?
A. MYT 29 Feb – 30 Apr to cover B767 maintenance – seat rate deal
A330 XLF arrival – 01 May 2008
A330 XLA delivery – NOV & DEC 08, & MAR & APR 09
The training dates for this aircraft are being plotted
Q. If crew tick the box that they are not interested in any of the above does
that mean they will be first to go?
A. A selection exercise will be carried out on every perm crew member (except
those opting for voluntary redundancy)
Q. More detailed info regarding the options required, ie:
Will any crew be kept on a 100% contract?
A. Yes where required
Q. Option 1 - 50% roster – duration?
A. November – March inclusive
Q. After Sunwing’s contract what happens when we go back to XL, do we go
back full time or part time?
A After Sunwing the crew concerned will return to the UK and will be full time
for the summer.
Q. Will 100% contracts be guaranteed after that duration?
A. Cannot confirm at this stage, could be 100% for summer then may have to
go to 50% contract again for winter.
Q. Will we have to sign another contract?
A. If an alternative option has been requested and agreed then some form of
confirmation will be produced and will have to be signed by the individual.
Q. When do we leave/return back to XL?
A. November through to 01April, the exact date in November is to be
confirmed
Q. Option 2 - 5 months unpaid leave
Can you take another job or do you have to pay double tax Emergency tax
code?
A. Yes you can take another job. You will be placed on emergency tax and
you would need to claim this back from the tax office once you had
received your P45 from your alternative employer.
Q. When do we leave/return back to XL will there be a chance of calling us
back sooner?
A. November – March for Apr 01 start. Unlikely to be sooner
Q. What happens about my XL company pension?
A. Individuals can continue to contribute, but the employer’s contributions will
cease for that period.
Q. Will I have to sign a new contract when I come back
A. No
Q. Will I keep my current staff number?
A. Yes
Q. Will I go back full time? Is this guaranteed?
A. Yes for summer, as long as the company fleet plan remains the same.
Q. Option 3 - Sunwings contract
Do I have to pay for my uniform/training.
A. No
Q. How long is the training course.
A. Dependant on current qualifications & Transport Canada
Q. What is the Pay/Hours
A. answers below from Sunwing
a) We were looking for 20 crew. We would look at approximately 7 CSM's and 13
F/A's
b) The F/A's are paid $20.00 per flight hour and $30.00 for the CSM's
c) The Cabin Crew are paid per diem at $3.25 per hour while away from the
Canadian home base
d) They are paid a commission for all on board sales.
e) The crew would be operating southern turns, usually back the same day,
however, there may be the occasional out of town layover in Canada
f) The UK crews would probably be all based in Calgary, however, if we do not get
all of our numbers in Toronto, there may be a requirement for crew here
Q. Will I be demoted?
A. The decision will be Sunwing’s together with what positions are available –
they do not have an A/P position
Q. If I left the Sunwings contract before the six months are up does that mean
I have left XL?
A. Yes.
Q. What happens about illness to parents back in the UK. Will XL fly us home?
A. No – this is a Sunwing contract so would need to talk to them
Q. What if someone doesn’t like it?
A. Cases like these will be looked at on an individual basis.
Other:
Q. Can redundancy payouts be made more attractive for voluntary
redundancy to try and reduce compulsory redundancy?
A. The Company is not considering enhanced voluntary redundancy at this
stage.
Q. Compulsory redundancies – Selection for Redundancies – Seniority
A. No, full selection criteria process will be followed
Q. What work is secured for the winter?
A. Programme includes more long flights, very similar to last year & as many
ad-hocs as possible.
Q. There has been mentioned that light aircraft use in Caribbean is too
expensive and will cease? If this is correct, then what are the alternatives
for the company? Will we operate our own long haul programme this
winter?
A. All areas of expenditure are being looked at.
Q. When will 747/767 crew be trained on the 737?
A. During the Winter, from November onwards
Q. How do ex AAE crew fit into the seniority list?
A. There are no such people or list, all crew have been XL since May 06. When
they became XL their service was continuous and their original date of
joining was transferred with them.
Q. Reduction of Base Managers & Trainers/Line Trainers/ Office staff?
A. All are under review as per Peter Owen’s communication
Q. Demotion of newly promoted crew for this winter?
A. All positions are being looked at
Q. Will XL allow voluntary/compulsory made redundant crew reasonable time
off to attend job interviews?
A. Yes
Q. When will winter leave be announced?
A. In approx 10 days time
Q. Are XL UK, France & Germany all one company?
A. All separate companies
Q. What is the state of the company? Crew are concerned about refinancing
of loan that is coming up. What do XL predict for the future?
A. Discussions are ongoing regarding refinancing target date of March. This is
a painful process but puts us in a good position for the future.
Q. Commission deductions have started again. Also there hav been issues of
parts of money going missing from being placed into the safe and arriving
at Alpha. What are the money procedures at Alpha once the safe is
emptied? Any security measures in place, ie cameras or how many people
are dealing with cash?
A. The commission deductions shouldn’t have stopped. Any deductions are
split between Alpha/ XL & Crew, so they don’t have to pay all ‘unders’.
However also get paid ‘overs’.
Action: Company to attach Security aspects and flow charts to go with
minutes.
Suggestions for Possible Savings to be made by:
Using plain rubbish bags, cuttlery packs/sick bags, soaps, napkins and trays
Crew could leave unopened drink bottles on a/c and only uplift as necessary
Line Trainers on Flights observing as an extra crew member. Additional
expenses could pursers incorporate the roles of reporting back
observations?
Snys on long haul flights – unnecessary expenses
Stop & Search policy – Action for Mr XX to come back to us regarding
this
The Company thanked all for their suggestions for savings. These will be
looked at along with all the others.
4. Schedule of meetings
24/09/07 @ 1400 Company to provide responses to options prior to this
meeting
1/10/07 @ 1400
15/10/07 @ 1400