Netjets to furlough 540?

[granlistillo]

One of my IOE captains went there in mid 08. I guess the hire date will be before that?

 

[wrxpilot]

One of my IOE captains went there in mid 08. I guess the hire date will be before that?

Yes, unfortunately.

http://www.columbusdispatch.com/liv...ories/2009/11/05/netjets_layoffs.html?sid=101

 

[bike21]

http://www.salon.com/wires/ap/business/2009/11/05/D9BPJOIG1_us_netjets_layoffs

 

[jskibo]

Buffet must have needed money to pay for his Burlington Northern purchase yesterday...... Not good news!

 

[CoffeeIcePapers]

As someone who knows nothing about their operation, isn't this a huge percentage of their pilots?

 

[Baronman]

Roughly 15%.

 

[gne in prog]

not good.

Isn't simcom or someone offering free recurrent training for a while?

that was for pilots who were on full service contracts when they were let go. i'm not sure netjets falls under that.

 

[lostplanetairman]

I have a really good friend who is a senior CA at Netjets. We visited him in October and he gave us the rundown. He says that the furloughs were well anticipated after the recession hit badly last year. Sales of the shares stopped. The company operated on sales of the shares. The company did not manage operations well. Sales of the shares kept them afloat cash wise. He told us in October to expect ~500 pilots to be furloughed.

He cited instance after instance of huge needless expenses related to his trips. He said he could only extrapolate that to the rest of the organization and talk about money wasted. So until they get their operations under control, they will lose money. Since they are not selling fractional shares to support the negative cash flow from operations, they will be in a cash flow bind.

 

[rd757]

From The Columbus Dispatch newspaper

NetJets pares pilot ranks by 495
Business First of Columbus - by Brian R. Ball

The NetJets Inc. corporate jet operator based at Port Columbus International will lay off 495 pilots from its North American operations, the second major cutback at the division of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. within two months.

The company, the largest seller of fractional interests in corporate aircraft, described the layoffs as “furloughs” in accordance with its contract with its pilots union, suggesting the pilots could eventually get called back.

Company spokesman Ted Lowen said fewer than 100 of the job losses will come out of Port Columbus. Furloughs are set to begin Jan. 15.

“It’s part of an ongoing process of realigning our costs to the state of the business today,” Lowen said.

The cutbacks represent about 15.5 percent of the 3,200 pilots it employed before the furloughs.

“The more senior pilots will not be affected,” Lowen said.

On Sept. 11, the company cut about 350 non-pilot positions, or about 5 percent of the 7,000 employees it had worldwide. That round of cuts affected primarily administrative staffs, but did not affect pilots.

After this round of layoffs, about 1,360 jobs will remain in Columbus, Lowen said.

Earlier this year, the company began a voluntary program that included unpaid leaves of absence and early retirements to reduce its costs and avoid pilot furloughs. The program, however, was based on projections of a more rapid industry recovery.

In its second-quarter earnings report, NetJets reported a loss of $349 million before taxes for the first six months of the year, with the losses accelerating in the second quarter.

It said NetJets’ revenue dropped 42 percent in the first half of the year, including an 81 percent decline in fractional jet sales and a 22 percent drop in flight operations. It warned that “NetJets owns more planes than is required for its present level of operations and further downsizing will be required unless demand rebounds.”

Lowen said the company has little handle on when NetJets could begin hiring again.

“We’re doing the hard work now to get prepared for what we expect to be steady growth,” he said. “When that happens, no one can really tell.”

The second half of the year has brought major change for the company, including the departure of founder and CEO Richard Santulli last month. That shake-up came days before NetJets confirmed plans to move its corporate headquarters to Columbus, the longtime site of its operational headquarters, from Woodbridge, N.J.

NetJets, began in 1964 as the first business jet charter and aircraft management company. It sells fractional interests in aircraft to businesses and executives who do not fly enough to warrant purchase of a whole aircraft. NetJets also maintains and operates that aircraft.

It flies more than 800 corporate jets to more than 173 countries.

 

[GUNIT]

Netjets is entering a new post-Santulli era. It is shaping up to be a different company. This furlough is really a shame. There was a lot of nasty internal stuff that precipitated this.

 

[ChasenSFO]

Bad news...but I can't say I'm surprised at the fact there was a furlough, but 495, that number does surprise me. I know a guy who's in that 495, and it really sucks. I'm pretty sure this is why he left the airlines, to avoid this crap. Wish them all luck.

 

[N826AW]

Here's the press release...

http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/091105/cl06577.html?.v=1

Union Receives Notice of NetJets' Intent to Furlough Pilots
Press Release
Source: NetJets Association of Shared Aircraft Pilots
On 8:30 pm EST, Thursday November 5, 2009

GAHANNA, Ohio, Nov. 5 /PRNewswire/ -- The NetJets Association of Shared Aircraft Pilots (NJASAP) Executive Board has received notice of NetJets Aviation, Inc.'s, intent to furlough up to 495 pilots; the effective furlough date is anticipated for mid January 2010. An independent labor organization, NJASAP represents the interests of the professional pilots who fly in the service of NetJets.

"After several months of continuous efforts to mitigate a pilot furlough, we have reached a point at which the economic realities that challenge our employer can no longer be offset by the ground-breaking initiatives implemented earlier this year," NJASAP President Capt. Mark Luthi said. In April, the parties launched the Joint Preventive Measures Campaign which gave the pilot force a menu of voluntary, incentivized options intended to alleviate the overstaffing issue. Despite widespread campaign participation, NetJets has concluded the initiative is no longer sustainable.

A second attempt to stave off a furlough was made late last month when the Executive Board presented a series of concepts to senior NetJets executives; however, the most recent effort did not come to fruition.

Recognizing the seriousness of the economic crisis early on, Association leaders sought to supplement its furlough mitigation efforts by forming the NJASAP Furlough Working Group, which was tasked with preparing a robust pilot assistance initiative should a reduction in force take place. "Hoping a working group's efforts prove unnecessary is hardly an appropriate mindset for a responsible leadership group; however, I freely admit the Board and I would have preferred the group's year-long preparations been for naught," Luthi said.

Almost one year of planning has positioned the Association to offer immediate access to information and resources designed to assist each furloughed crewmember and his or her family. In addition to a series of informational teleconferences, the Union has launched a web-based Furloughed Pilot Resource Center and has prepared a comprehensive resource guide that outlines financial, unemployment, and worker retraining benefits as well as alternate insurance options and various assistance grants.

The Executive Board has also approved a seven-month dues refund and the immediate cessation of dues collected from affected pilots and has purchased a year-long subscription to two aviation job sites for each pilot. Additionally, the FWG is finalizing an outreach program that will keep furloughed pilots in touch with their peers by paring them with active pilots.

"Although the furlough could not be prevented, NJASAP maintains a tireless commitment to protecting the professional interests of its members and to supporting our furloughed pilots," Luthi said. "As the NetJets restructuring effort continues, the Union remains willing to engage in mutually beneficial talks intended to hasten our pilots' return to the flight line."

About NJASAP

NJASAP is the independent labor affiliate responsible for overseeing the representation duties of the 2,800-plus professional flight deck crewmembers who fly in the service of NetJets Aviation, Inc. The Association, which is managed by pilots for the exclusive benefit of pilots, is governed by a nine-member Executive Board, maintains a 22-member Stewards Council, employs nine professional staff members, and sponsors a variety of pilot-managed committees. For more information about NJASAP, please visit the Association's Web site, www.njasap.com.

 

[NJA_Capt]

Re: Netjets to furlough

It has been a sad announcement to bear. It is odd that very little is posted here about NJA, but this thread was started only hours before the announcement. :dunno:

Great, because what the market needs is more business jets up for sale

You can thank the Obam’inistration and the media for that.

How many pilots work for net jets?

3151<O</O

……why are they so heavy on airplanes. Is it companies are cutting back flying or is it that they are higher priced than their competitors

<O</O
People are cutting back, especially with the Gov/Media on their backs. Yes, We are/have been more expensive than our competitors…..That will not change.<O</O

The company operated on ….He cited instance after instance ……. He said he could only….. they will lose money….. they will be in a cash flow bind.

<O</O
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Not sure where he got his data, but it is more speculation than substance. I won’t discuss operations, but only say that his speculations are off base.

This furlough is really a shame. There was a lot of nasty internal stuff that precipitated this.

Not sure how you can draw that conclusion. The numbers didn’t hold up in the economic climate. Something had to give. I will miss Santulli, but I believe that Sokol is doing some much needed internal housekeeping.

 

[mpenguin1]

Netjets is entering a new post-Santulli era. It is shaping up to be a different company. This furlough is really a shame. There was a lot of nasty internal stuff that precipitated this.

Place a large blame on the attack on the Corporate Aviation industry.....

 

[lostplanetairman]

Re: Netjets to furlough

<O</O
<O</O
Not sure where he got his data, but it is more speculation than substance. I won’t discuss operations, but only say that his speculations are off base.

They were not speculations. They were based on real life instances of huge expenditures that were not necessary. Sending two crews to the same airplane. Then leaving one behind for two days in an expensive hotel (his crew) while they figured out what to do with them. He went on and on and on about the operational mismanagment. He said that he continued to pour in suggestions to right things as he wants to see things improve.

 

[NJA_Capt]

Re: Netjets to furlough

They were not speculations. They were based on real life instances of huge expenditures that were not necessary.

Dude. You're preaching to the choir. I've been here well over 10 years. Waste has nothing to do with operations v. sales. The data you (he) presented about sales/ops was very out of date.

 

[GUNIT]

Re: Netjets to furlough

Not sure how you can draw that conclusion. The numbers didn’t hold up in the economic climate. Something had to give. I will miss Santulli, but I believe that Sokol is doing some much needed internal housekeeping.

No doubt that the writing was on the walls economically speaking, however, there was a lot of internal strife ultimately leading up to the bombshell of Santulli no longer being President & CEO. Sokol is cutting some internal fat but also cutting some areas a little bit too dry.

Bottom line is Sokol is a numbers man. Numbers will dictate everything, which, in today's economy, may not be en entirely terrible thing.

 

[lostplanetairman]

Re: Netjets to furlough

Dude. You're preaching to the choir. I've been here well over 10 years. Waste has nothing to do with operations v. sales. The data you (he) presented about sales/ops was very out of date.

Dunno--the data he presented was within six months of his experience. Waste is all about operations. You try to minimize it. He's been there over 10 years as well.

 

[surreal1221]

Eek.

All for nothing.

 

[akmountaineer]

I really hope they don't furlough. Seems like a top-notch place to work. Unfortunately "bizjet" is like a 4-letter word nowadays. Whatever happens I hope they maintain those things which make it a desirable place to work.

I agree. I was hoping to end up there when things get better.