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Flying on Thanksgiving Day is a joy. I've done it twice now. The ATL concourses are practically empty. It is a bit strange to see the flight boards almost empty
by AshleyGrant 8y ago
Flying on Thanksgiving Day is a joy. I've done it twice now. The ATL concourses are practically empty. It is a bit strange to see the flight boards almost empty on a Thursday morning.
I do bring $5 Starbucks gift cards for the entire crew of every flight I'm on to thank them for having to work on a day when most of the country is with family. It's not much, but it's something. The folks flying on holidays are low on the seniority list, so they're generally working that day because they have to, not because they want to.
- zorpner 8y agoI always try to fly on Thanksgiving/Christmas day (SFO->DCA this Thursday), and this is a great idea. Thank you!
- warent 8y agoThis is a great idea. I'm going to do the same when I fly out Thanksgiving as well. Thank you
- fabricexpert 8y agoThat's incredibly wholesome, the thought didn't even occur to me.
- scirocco 8y agoWouldn't you get paid extra for working on such a day?
- cperciva 8y agoDepends what the union negotiates. When they negotiate overtime pay for working on holidays, you typically end up with the lucrative holiday hours being staffed by the most senior employees. Basically, the junior people get screwed no matter what...
- sokoloff 8y agoAn almost universal union truth.
- ehsankia 8y agoThat doesn't make sense. If it's so lucrative that people start fighting to work on that day, even if it's a holiday they'd usually spend with family, then it's probably overpaid. You want to have the right balance so that some will agree to work during those days, but not so much that people start fighting over it. It's also worth noting that not everyone celebrates these holidays, so for some, that's just a normal day like any other and they wouldn't mind it as much, but appreciate the slight bonus.
- bronco21016 8y agoI’ve not heard of any airline doing that for the pilots. I’m not sure about other employee groups. The attitude is that it’s a 24/7 operation and everyone knows this going in. No special days.
- rtb 8y agoWhy $5 Starbucks gift cards and not $5 cash?
- thrower123 8y agoI hate gift cards. "Here, rather than crassly giving you actual money, I've spent that money on this company scrip that you can only use in one place. Aren't you excited?" Great idea, just brilliant. I'll add it to the stack of worthless iTunes cards and cards for restaurants that don't have a franchise within 500 miles...
- Domark 8y agoIt’s the thought that counts.
- wild_preference 8y agoGift giving is more than just empty cash transfers. You could level your hate at anything. "Great, mom. Now I'm stuck playing with this one corporation's toy instead of having the cash to buy whatever I want. Ugh, I hate it!" It makes you sound ridiculous.
- ghaff 8y agoGift cards can be a reasonable gift. For example, you know someone likes hiking etc. and buys gear at $OUTDOOR_STORE but you really don't know what they want/need. But on the whole they're a bit of a scam based on what's mostly a relatively upper class attitude, at least on the US, about giving cash as a gift.
- leetcrew 8y agocash is a pretty terrible gift for people who give each other presents on a regular basis, unless the relationship is not reciprocal. if you and your friend just give each other $50 on Christmas, it's sort of pointless. if you give your friend a $50 gift card, now they have to go get themselves something nice that they wouldn't have purchased otherwise.
- DangerousPie 8y agoDon't you end up paying more for the gift cards than you saved by flying a day later?
- bronco21016 8y agoI think the point was that there is less chaos rather than saving a buck.
- ehsankia 8y agoAlso, it's about giving thanks and being a good human being more so than saving money.