If I had to make a choice right now of where I wanted to work it would have to be Southwest Airlines. My final goal would be to become a captain and to fly to Atlanta or San Diego. I would choose Southwest is because of their approach to employees and customer service. Their theory is that if they take care of their employees first and treat them well then in turn they will treat the customers the same way. They may not pay as much as some of the majors, like Delta, but having a good working environment to me is more important than making the "big money".
There are always safety/liability concerns when dealing with any airline both regional and major. Many of these safety factors can be minimized by following procedures and sticking to the checklists. For example if you are overweight you should not just assume that things will be ok. Things are done certain ways for a reason, whether they are proven to work or because of something that went wrong in the past, possibly costing someone their life. If the proper training is being conducted and procedures are being followed, then the chance of a mishap is greatly reduced.
To me, professionalism is the way a person conducts themselves both at work and off the clock. Utilizing the proper chain of command and not complaining to the junior people. The way they present themselves and treat others. Also always doing what you are supposed to and not cutting corners and hoping things will be ok.
Relating to the Colgan accident of Continental flight 3407 in Buffalo that killed 49 on board and 1 on the ground February 12, 2009, and the film Flying Cheap, there was a lack of professionalism. The first thing I viewed as lack of professionalism was during the interview of Roger Cohen, the regional airlines association president. When asked about the starting pay of first officers he responded by giving the high end of the pay. He would not address the starting pay and how it is an unlivable situation. Overall he did not seem to care about the well being of the junior pilots. The second lack of professionalism was the pilot that was interviewed about taking off when the aircraft was over weight. He did eventually write a report but he risked the lives of all the people on that flight. He may have had to deal with some irritated bosses but safety should always come first.
A couple ways to maintain professionalism while at you job would be to always show up on time, ready to work, and have a positive attitude. Also to treat your coworkers and the customers the way you would want to be treated; if there is an issue, pull the person aside and avoid causing problems. You should also maintain all these qualities outside of work because you never know who you may run into and where.
http://www.advancebusinessconsulting.com/advance!/strategic-alignment/strategic-alignment-business-cases/the-rise-of-southwest-airlines.aspx
http://video.pbs.org/video/1412744270/
First just so you know there is something wrong with your blog you have to scroll down for a long time to get to your post. Second I hope you do get to fly with southwest they are a nice airline and everything I have ever read about them is good when it comes to a working environment. While I think it is the other way around when it comes to complaining I do think that you are right when it comes to being unprofessional.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely agree about the Roger Cohen part. As the president of the RAA, it is inexcusable for him to be defending the wages paid to first year first officers. Check out this link to the rest of the interview with Cohen. It is mind boggling how unaware or in denial he is about the industry he is supposed to be the main advocate for. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/flyingcheap/interviews/cohen.html
ReplyDeleteI think its great that you want to work for Southwest. From everything that I have heard about them, so many of their employees are very happy working for them, and like Ryan said they have one of the nicest working environments in the industry. As an added bonus you only have to learn one type of aircraft, making you able to fly just about any route Southwest flies!
ReplyDeleteSouthwest is a good choice, however, I know several people who work for them who have reported that the company culture is changing since they acquired Air Tran...may be something to look into. Also, although long term you may make less money at Southwest because you don't have the option of transferring to larger equipment, here's a little fact - Southwest is the highest paid B737 operator.
ReplyDeleteAs stated earlier, your blog may need to be looked at. There is a lot of scrolling to do to get to the actual writing. Southwest does have an awesome reputation but I too have heard the rumblings since they acquired Air Tran. Do some research but it shouldn't be too hard to find a group of like minded professionals there.
ReplyDeleteI think it is great that you want to fly for Southwest. I hope it works out for you in the future. I also agree that professionalism is not only in the work place, but also out in public. You never know who you may bump into and give the wrong impression.
ReplyDeleteI have been hearing about how South West is not a bad place to work. I like how you went into more detail about why you wanted to work with them. I also have to agree that it was very unprofessional for Cohen to ignore the junior guys average pay. Good luck on making it to south west!
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