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NCL Ground Handling
Following on from other discussions regarding the EZY ground contracts, rumours started today that Servisair have lost it at NCL to the new kid on the block - GATE Aviation?? Anyone know any more, shame if it is true as Servisair's biggest contract!
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Gate NCl
Apparently servisair recieved notice that as of 21st January Gate aviation has been appointed to Handle all Ground Operations. Well done to the new kid on the block. 2 of the biggest all year round operators on their books!
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support from BRS
u poor guys up north! I can honestly say I feel for you to. We to from the 21 January 2009 will be handled not by servisair but by menzies. The annoying thing here at BRS is that no one seems to know for certain exactly what is going to happen.
There are so many roumours flying around at the moment that I am not believing / doing /reacting to anything until I have seen something written down on paper. We were told by our managers about it. Sorry though to hear that you guys are also in the same boat. We at Bristol are supporting you. We were also advised that now is a good time to join a union. Have any of you guys heard anything from Servisair? Kind Regards Speedbird |
I think it will be quite damaging for S'Air at NCL. EZY was their largest client, leaving them with only FR, TCX, SN, WOW and EI - the latter 3 only having 1 flight per day. Hope all ok for staff.
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Same here today we were told at liverpool that Servisair are not going to handle ezyjet from 09. This leaves either gate aviation or menzies.
My question...if say ezy choose gate aviation to handle them, does this mean gate aviation will handle ezyjet throughout all the uk? or does it vary from airport to airport? Gate aviation are only a small company so to take on someone like ezyjet will either be a big success for them or a disaster! Does anyone no if menzies are good to work for? i hear they pay higher wages? Still dont no anything official will keep listening |
So putting this together, easyJet have dumped all Servisair UK ops? GLA / EDI / LGW / etc to Menzies.
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the thing is that EZY gets a cheap deal with Menzies plus they are a known quantity - they have done enough new base start ups together to know how it works ....
Menzies have just laid off loads of staff where business is not booming ie LCY / LTN but Star alliance is going really well for them at LHR. They also have SOME (def not all) experienced managers who are used to the start ups and before they were menzies ... they were easyjet managers! |
EZY not lost at all bases, still handled by Servisair at BHX. But Menzies haven't started operating there yet:ooh:
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NCL Ground Handling
Servisair lost contract to Menzies this time last year at East Midlands!!
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well I think that for anyone who is in the same prediciment with regards from moving from Servisair accross to a new handling agent is honestly sit tight. It will be ok and all FOH staff will be fine and ram agents, baggage handlers dispatchers etc may well be transferd accross to menzies/Gate aviation as well as these new agents will need staff to continue the opperational side of things. We will all be fine! Lets all stick together and support our fellow colleagues in other bases and we will all ride out this storm!!!
Kind Regards Speedbird |
Good luck to all Servisair staff. Jobs should be safe through TUPE at least. But there is the uncertainty of how T&Cs may change. Too many rumours about Menzies floating about. However there is no smoke without fire.
They are cheaper with reason...costs are cut in all areas. Low cost operators may not be too worried about certain "reductions". Expansion is a good thing and fair play to any company who succeeds. However the rate of growth is too fast. One poster has commented that the Star Alliance at LHR is going well. Yes there are new contracts. However there is a severe shortage of "experienced staff". Ops agents are being rushed through after 4 days training and no prior experience. Some of the carriers have been unhappy with service provided on the ramp. Its no hidden secret that TAP wanted to delay their Menzies move further or were even against it. If this sounded too pessimistic, as the poster above mentions..stick together guys. Sometimes this sort of change can be positive. Either to move on to better things or perhaps just a new way of working. |
As well as STN :ugh:
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As well as STN |
Newcastle Handling
I don't know if I am way late with this news but Gate Aviation are advertising for staff due to easyJet moving their contract over from Servisair. Is this old news that I haven't heard about?
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Newcastle Gate Aviation - Easyjet
Does anyone know when Gate Aviation take over the EZY contract?
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21st January 2008
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Gate Aviation
Does anyone know anything about this company?
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Does anyone know if Gate Aviation have started interviewing for their recent recruitment drive at NCL?
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newcastle
From the Chronicle. Odd choice of words - Servisair chose to drop Easy?
AIR passengers could face long delays after baggage handlers and ground staff agreed to take industrial action. About 120 members of the Unite union at Newcastle Airport voted in favour of a possible strike amid fears of job losses. The Servisair workers are concerned they will be out of work after the firm dropped its contract with low-cost carrier easyJet. The work has been picked up by Gate Aviation, which will take over on January 21. Staff would usually be transferred to the new company, but a contract dispute has broken out. Regional industrial organiser for Unite, Graham Eastwood, said: “There is some dispute between Gate Aviation and Servisair which is yet to be finalised. We’re trying to work with both companies to get this matter resolved as quickly as possible without affecting services. Workers voted almost unanimously that, if needed, they are prepared to take industrial action to protect jobs. The action could be imminent, however we don’t believe there will be any disruption over the Christmas period. The ball is clearly in Servisair’s court.” Workers who could stage the walkout include baggage handlers, ramp staff and aircraft loaders. Easyjet flights could be grounded if they took strike action and other carriers could also be affected by any walkout. Meetings between the companies were due to continue on Monday. However, a Servisair spokesman said: “Under UK employment law our employees who work on the easyJet contract have the right to transfer to Gate Aviation when the contract moves to them on 22 January, 2009. We had hoped that Unite would focus on supporting our efforts to protect their members’ rights instead of threatening disruption to passengers.” No-one was available for comment from Gate Aviation |
Seems like a mad theory, "we lost the contract so let's go on strike to save our jobs".
Mr Scargill would be proud. As SLF it's another opportunity for the airport and staff to shoot themselves in the foot. |
Servisair did NOT loose the contract- Servisair had in excess of 12mths left of the contract, Servisair arranaged a meeting with Ezy to discuss their breach of contract-
Ezy agreed a number of turns per week in NCL BRS LPL- Ezy has been changing their programme constantly. then end result being a 17% loss of revenue for Servisair from the Ezy contract. Servisair asked Ezy for more cash to fund the differences, Ezy were not meeting servisair on the table so Servisair issued Ezy with 90 days notice. |
Does anyone know the outcome of Monday's meeting between Gate Aviation and Servisair?
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DL93 likeing ur name :ok:
But DL93, thats a bit of info here at BRS we wernt informed about:ugh: Typical :mad: management here keeping us in the dark all the time |
i heard similar, the contract meant servisair were losing money for each turn around and refused to do it for a loss. Gate were appraoched when servisair gave notice.
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easyjet went to swissport for handling but they refused- gate aviation refused at first as they wanted time to set up their ops fully- however with gate refusing it was leaving Ezy with out a handling agent so the airport stepped and gate accepted the contract-
I honestly dont think they are going to be ready to take over such a big contract the equip and manpower they are gonna need is un-real and they have just over 4 weeks to get it all set up and working. Speedbird- what is going to happen to the guys @ BRS any ideas |
Has agreement been reached between Servisair and Gate over transfer of staff or are Servisair looking at redundancies in NCL and likewise BRS? I too wish Gate all the best, but it is a very large contract to take on and 4 weeks is not alot of time to prepare?
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Well at the moment havent gate aviation as a company been operational for no more than 2 months and only handles Eastern Airways? Thats what I was told when I came up for a day and if that is the case, that is one huge operation they will have to take on. Does Gate have the infrastructure in place???:bored:
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Gate advertised on the NCL website a couple of weeks ago for different role types. They aren't leaving much time to do the interview rounds and training before the start of the EZY contract. I emailed them on Monday asking if they knew when they would be interviewing, but they replied saying they don't know at the moment and will be in touch in due course. Once Christmas/New Year is out of the way, then the interviews go ahead, you are looking at least 21st January as a starting date for new employees. People have to give notice on their current jobs too, so it dosen't look like this has been organised very well.
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I have also applied for a position at Gate Aviation after the EZY contract take over announcement. Having read SWBKCB's post I am not filled with confidence, surely if the Servisair Gate meeting reaches a reasonable conclusion there will be little chance for 'outsiders'?
I'm starting to get quite anxious. I'm starting to doubt that Gate will be set up in full for the take over of contract on the 21st of Jan (Uneducated opinion of course) looking at it realistically, say they interview over one week starting monday the 5th of Jan, they could of made a decision by the 12th, hired the staff and filled out all the paperwork. This gives them just over 1 week to train all of these staff ready for the start of the EZY contract on the 21st. I mean, from what I've heard, they seem a good company who are only growing at NCL, but this dispute regarding exsisting Servisair staff has seemed to mess Gate up abit. I suppose we'll have to wait a month to see how it goes. |
All FOH staff are being TUPEd accross to Menzies here at BRS on the 22 Jan. They to are recruiting but as to how many they will take on I really can't say.
There are a lot of redundencies being announced at BRS and Servisair on the 30th of DEC. How are your colleagues up there fairing who aren't being TUPEd accross? |
So I suppose someone with absolutely NO experience at all doesn't stand any chance at all of being employed in any capacity by Gate Aviation????
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KNIEVEL77, I assume when Gate Aviation took on this contract they were aware of the UK employment law regarding the Servisair staff (mentioned in SWBKCB's post) and were probably therefore expecting some Servisair staff, so at the moment I wouldnt be too worried at the present moment in time, I am in the same point and am trying to stay positive! I will be contacting them on the 2nd to try and get an update on the whole situation for candidates.
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Hi George,
Any update? K77. |
UPDATE (second hand, dont quote me on figures)
Gate is taking a fair few Ramp Agents, and FOH staff from Servisair. As well as a team of despatchers and training staff. They are also actively recruiting staff, some of which are ex-seasonal workers from Servisair. I imagine these guys will take over EZY operations from the start, and leave the Gate staff to deal with Eastern untill things settle down. They are getting equipment daily, and it all looks to be in good condition. I am also told that the concerns aren't with the staff or infrastructure, (Servisair did a decent job with EZY) but more that there are concerns that new staff may not recieve their clearance in time. I guess a few guys at Gate are getting very nervous, their going to have all eyes on them when they take over (25th Jan? My memory let me down). Its a HUGE gamble for Gate. If they get this right, they're going to be a major force at NCL, if they don't... they're going to look foolish. I wouldn't want to be a manager! In the words of my friend (a former Servisair employee)... the guys on the ground arent fussed. Its still a plane, and its still to load and unload. Good Luck, they are going to need it! |
I would have to agree, working for a ground handling company as a trainer myself. The biggest thing will be getting the necessary security clearance for Gate's new staff.
They may have the staff and equipment to handle such a large contract but it's not much good if none of the staff can get airside to do their jobs!! Servisair have made the right decision by serving notice to ezy. At the end of the day the handling agent can't operate at a loss particularly in the current economic climate. |
Who is the managemet team behind gate aviation? Are they experienced in aviation?
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Hi Richard,
As a trainer, what are the chances of a 43 year old with no 'airport' experience thinking of having a complete career change getting a job, say with Gate.........although I DO have already airside clearance due to working on the ITV programme 'Airline'? K77. |
I think Gate will look very bad if they don't even so much as offer interviews to people who have spent time sending in their CV's, especially when they advertised on the NCL website for a few different job roles. They knew what would happen with the Servisair staff and contracts when they decided to take on the EZY contract, so why put people through the past few weeks of hoping for an interview, then decide they aren't taking on 'outsiders' Looks like I won't be getting a foot through the door of working at the airport this year then.
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Nobody should give up hope of working at an airport, Newcastle or any other, because this is not traditionally a time when handling agents are recruiting.
When I was working within the industry, January and the winter months were always quiet, but with Thomas Cook supposedly basing a third aircraft, and the seasonal charters from Onur Air etc, the companies will be looking to take on staff to see them through the summer, and hopefully beyond. Gate are likely wanting experienced people in now, because this is a "make or break" contract. They simply dont have the time to train up 'green' staff. Working airside is not like a lot of jobs. In 2 weeks, they can't possibly train people all the safety/security aspects, and teach them to drive the vehicles/despatch flights. Not to mention the time it takes to get an airside pass. By advertising on the website, it sounds like they got what they wanted, ex-seasonal staff who already have driven airside, already know the rules of the ramp etc, and will just need refreshing to do the job. I bet in March, Servisair, Gate and.... (Swissport?) will be looking to take on new staff, and thats your best chance to get a foot in the door. A lot of people start with no experience, and they soon learn. An interest in the industry, and maybe some semi-related experience (customer service, transport. warehousing?) will probably get you a long way. Watch the website! |
Well i'm actually currently training as a Helicopter Pilot at Newcastle and also spent 6 months there filming for Airline/Easyjet so i'm hopefully not totally 'green'!
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