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> If I were a pilot, the last opinion I'd care about would be the eccentric billionaire CEO One news stories I read said he became involved at the request of t
by ErrantX 15y ago
> If I were a pilot, the last opinion I'd care about would be the eccentric billionaire CEO
One news stories I read said he became involved at the request of the pilot's union - so I guess they do care about it :)
- Joakal 15y agoIt's also in the open letter that he was requested. He had also offer private meetings with not only the union but pilots as well.
- Klinky 15y agoYour union representative also publicly asked to meet with me personally. I believe that would only cause more publicity which would further damage the airline and I am not best placed to deal with the details of the negotiation. He has no plans to meet with the union. His personal meetings with pilots are probably more to brow beat & pressure them, instead of a gesture of goodwill.
- UserError 15y agoI seriously doubt he intends any browbeating. Much more likely is that he would just try to make them feel appreciated and create a personal connection with them. They would be a lot more willing to deal with their friend than some "evil corporation."
- Klinky 15y agoHe has already agreed with the evil corporation. He _is_ the evil corporation. A wolf in sheep's clothing. I doubt he's inviting any of the pilots with him the next time he jet skis with a naked model clinging to his back. Let's just say becoming friends with a billionaire because you've been invited to meet him due to the fact that you're on strike at one of his companies is unlikely.
- whyleyc 15y agoI'm sure this is true if you have a blanket mindset of "all corporations are evil" but you're doing a Branson a disservice - he's one of the few progressive modern CEO's around. Check out the "Employees First" section here - http://www.hrh.ch/whoiswho/bransonr/br_page4.html http://www.hrh.ch/whoiswho/bransonr/br_page4.html
- Klinky 15y agoMy usage of of "evil company" was in relation to the post I was replying to. Also your article is 13 years old. It sounds like things have changed & Branson has a more hands off approach with the airline now.
- whyleyc 15y agoActually it doesn't sound like things have changed. Here's a recent article detailing how Branson gave 8,500 Virgin Atlantic employees 2 week's holiday + 2 free tickets to fly anywhere on the airline's network as a 'birthday bonus' for loyal service: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1194942/Virgin-staff-bonuses-ailing-rivals-BA-urged-pay-cut.html http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1194942/Virgin-staff...
- Klinky 15y agoSir Richard Branson's Virgin Atlantic has itself also been forced into staff cost-cutting to survive the recession. It has already announced an imposed pay freeze for its staff. Board directors will not take bonuses this year. And the airline has filed to reduce its headcount by 600 staff - a cut of 7 per cent - though it says it has so far activated about 500 job cuts. It's a bit like saying "everyone gets cake, oh and 7% of you are getting fired".
- estel 15y agoWhy is making job cuts something only an evil corporation would do?
- Klinky 15y agoI think there's a bit of a difference writing an opinion piece on the blog vs going to a negotiating table with the union. Also the union management is not the pilots. They're there to engage the airline management & perhaps they thought asking for Branson might get more publicity or maybe he'd bring something new to the table. I am doubtful the pilots expected his opinion would differ much from management.