Let us say you were an employee of an airline. Every time the airline would reach a quota of certain operational measurements pertaining to the punctuality of flights within a quarter, you would receive a bonus of up to $300.00…
Instead of Bonuses for Airline Employees, a Chance to Win Prizes — Like a Lottery?!?
…but the president of your company decided to drastically change the incentive program: instead of receiving a guaranteed small bonus, you have the opportunity instead each quarter to win a significantly larger prize — such as one of ten employees to receive a choice of a Mercedes-Benz C-Class sedan or $40,000.00; or perhaps the sole winner of a grand prize of $100,000.00.
Not only must the airline reach its performance targets, but your attendance also must be perfect in order for you to be eligible to win a prize.
Which would you rather have?
Wait: before you answer, an unspecified number of smaller prizes — such as a trip for a vacation — will also be awarded to lucky employees.
Employees of United Continental Holdings Incorporated — which is the parent company of United Airlines — do not have a choice, as their incentive program has been overhauled as per a memorandum issued to them by Scott Kirby.
Why?
“We believe that this new program will build excitement and a sense of accomplishment as we continue to set all-time operational records that result in an experience that our customers value,” Erin Benson — who is a spokeswoman for United Airlines — said in an e-mail message, according to this article written by Michael Sasso for Bloomberg…
…but for some employees, Craig Symons — who is the president of the flight dispatchers union of United Airlines — a chance at a new car is apparently not as nice as a small-but-steady stream of cold, hard cash: “We all want to win, but this program doesn’t encourage a team approach to winning. No team-oriented reward should be dictated by lottery.”
Summary
Wondering if I was the only one who found this news to be odd, I checked FlyerTalk to see if anything was posted there — and sure enough, the response and reaction by members of FlyerTalk was nearly unanimous.
“Stupid idea”, opined FlyerTalk member PsiFighter37. “Who even thought this would go over well?”
FlyerTalk member mahasamatman concurred with “This is about the worst idea United could have come up with. I hope the employees strike over this — I’d certainly support them.”
Oh; and by the way: the memorandum was issued by Kirby on Employee Appreciation Day at United Airlines.
We ❤️ our United family! #EmployeeAppreciationDay https://t.co/lOLLpSkZZi
— United Airlines (@united) March 2, 2018
So — have you decided which incentive you would rather have?
Photograph ©2017 by Brian Cohen.
