Gents,

The reason for yesterday's redundancy announcements (23 pilots) are:

• BHX was used as the base for most city break route develop. These routes can take a 2 or 3 years to become reasonably profitable, and the company has decided that it cannot wait that long in the current climate.
• 3 (more like 2½) aircraft will be taken out of BHX (3 leases will not be renewed over next 3 months). This accounts for the 23 pilots (+43 cabin crew). In the past, the company would absorb these extra crews short term, and usually with natural wastage ..etc.. it was time to recruit again by the summer schedule. As we all know, there is no movement in the market at present, so the company decided it couldn't afford to carry the extra cost this time.

It apears that bmibaby does have a future ... 2008/2009 was a good year (even with the fuel crisis), and 2010 is already looking good.
bmi like many other airlines is cocooning itself against excess costs while this storm continues to blow, with the intention of being more than just viable when the sun comes out again.

Any airline (including that one) who says they are making lots of money at present are clearly talking out their dump valve ... the next 2 years in this industry is about survival only ...

East Midlands - Belfast
 

There are 3 daily EMA-BFS flights currently bookable for next Summer.

Apart from Prague and Warsaw the remainder of the EMA schedule appears to be un-affected by the latest announcements, but as we all know a lot could change over the coming months.

As one of baby's first officers told yesterday that I might be losing my job just after Christmas, this is not a happy time for many of us.

I'm quite high up in seniority but apparently this does not count for much when they decide who goes and who stays.

Does anyone, who has been in this position before, know what sort of things they will take into account...could it be purely cost based ie the more you get paid the more likely you are to get the boot ?

Not a great subject for a first post...good luck to eveyone in this boat !:sad:

EMA-BFS Route.
 

Cannot See Baby Dropping this Route its been One Of the Bread and Butter Routes Since the Days of British Midland. What You Might See At EMA Is them Cutting The Schedule Back On a Weekday From 3 Flights to 2 They Could Also Do This With The EDI + GLA Flights if Needs be As Long As there is A Schedule Allowing People To Do A Days Business in Scotland/Belfast Area The Paxs Will Be Happy. Not Everyone Wants 2 Fly Into BHD And This Has Been Shown in Pax Figures On the Route Since RYR Started BHD They Have Held Up Quite Well.

Stan The Agreement With LH Is Not Going to Be Officially Signed Until Early Next Year They Are Not Just Going to Close Baby Down Over Night. They Would Not Be Selling A Full Summer 2009 Schedule if This was Going to Happen. Think the Interesting Time for Baby Will Be Oct 2009 When The Summer Sched Comes to An End Then I Think We Will Know What Direction Baby is Going In. Wether its Sold Or Merged With German Wings. Who Knows??

Stan,

What's the companies and your Balpa CCs stance on redundancy policy? Alot of airlines including the one I work for are firmly in favour of LIFO - indeed its written into my Terms and Conditions. Therefore, if 23 pilots are to go, its the bottom 23 on the seniority list that go irrespective of base.

Now, age discrimination legislation has muddied the waters on this but Balpa nationally view LIFO as lawful and the least risk option for an airline when making compulsory redundancies.

Otherwise, someone like you who is relatively senior looses their job while hypothetically, someone who joined last week, but at a different base keeps theirs.

DH

Stan, as far as the pilots are concerned the last time bmi made people redundant (2001/2002) it was based on LIFO. Whether this precedent remains so with WW remains to be seen. As far as cabin crew are concerned (30 crew and 11.5 cabin managers at risk) I believe that the policy employed with the longhaul cabin crew at MAN whereby redundancies will be based on performance and not date of joining/length of service will be used with the BHX people. So, depending on your AMP record, assessements, good letter/bad letter etc this will help decide who stays and who goes.

Which aircraft are not having a lease renewal?

Who cares, they're all rubbish.

I am afraid WW are getting what they deserve in my view.

Their product is low quality, the aircraft are tatty and old, the staff I have experienced onboard are less than professional and the service is always left wanting.

Smarten up your act WW and you might be a bit mroe successful!

"(30 crew and 11.5 cabin managers at risk)"


A very painful judgement of Solomon coming up there from the looks of it

Vuelo

I sincerely hope you go to whatever your place of work is tomorrow and find a redundancy notice waiting for you. Hopefully you have a mortgage to pay and you can then share the situation that bmi baby staff find themselves in with a month to go before christmas. Hopefully your family won't suffer to much as a result. I hate to say this on a public forum but you are an A*RSE...

Stan and dashead - I believe that LIFO is also written into the BMI baby pilots agreement which was only signed by on behalf of the company about 6 months ago, presumably after it had been vetted by their legal department.

Vuelo

Having used bmiBaby a couple of times in the last few months I found...

Their product is high quality, the aircraft are smart and could have been new if I wasn't more in the know, the staff I have experienced onboard are professional and the service is what would be expected.

I'd summarise to say they did exactly what it said on the tin....

unbelieveable !
 

Vuelo, You insensitive tit ! :mad:

Who is WW ?

I wish you were in my shoes yesterday.

I stood in a meeting and watched peoples faces go grey, cabin crew in tears, and people see there plans and aspirations come apart.

Lifo is a huge issue, its in the contracts. The company have sprung this one on everyone. Instead of an unlucky few knowing they have no job after xmas, the whole base is in left pondering about their jobs. No one knows who will be out of a job yet. They dont even know if they dare buy xmas presents as they might be the one to be out of work.

The irony is that the BHX base was baby's biggest. The crews worked their a*ses off this summer trying to make a go of this company. They dealt with delays, tech aircraft, demanding schedules, and pax with attitudes like yours! And for the most of it they are a professional and happy bunch that did their best.

At the moment everyone is worried sick,

Give them a break eh ? :*

WW is the IATA code for BMI Baby. Less ranting more google-ing please.

I have used bmi Baby on numerous occasions from CWL and always found the service outstanding ...good luck for the future to all those involved !!

jeez !
 

Mods, Who are these people ?

I know who ww is, I work for them !

I was asking vuelo who he thinks ww is. :ugh:

Is it a big faceless corporation, or a bunch of hard working, mortgage paying staff who face losing their jobs.

Thank christ I dont read this sh**t too often.

more reading ... less googling .



Excrab. Well said, I wish I had your vocabulary, Im just too annoyed !

This is such a shame, however not suprising. WW cannot beat FR on brand recognition abroad. Therefore WW relies on PAX originating from the UK. FR has the power of marketing europe wide - so if they start a route thats in competition with WW - like PRG/AGP/ALC/PMI for example, locals who want to get to the UK midlands will know more of FR due to their size compared to WW.

As I say, it is a shame, as WW offer a good service 9 times out of 10. However, recently looking at PRG from BHX, FR are offering £10 flights whereas WW offers £24.99 one way...I wonder who will win.

Except of course Ryanair WILL, without question, be losing money at that price. As far as they're concerned it can only go on for so long. I have to say, the naiivety and ignorance of a lot of the non-bmi employees on this thread is truly staggering. Wake up people, Ryanair are NOT immune from what's going on, they just spin a very convincing line in bullsh*t.

AltFlaps post is by far the most level-headed and accurate.

Veulo

You truly are a VILE person to suggest that people deserve to loose there jobs.

As previously stated they are all hard working people with mortgages and loved ones to support.

As you slide down the banister of life may the splinters dig firmly and sharply in your ARSE!:E