When you’re flying an airplane and the speed in the air starts to slow for whatever reason, you are actually supposed to push the stick rather than pull up.  Pushing the stick gives you some forward air speed and forward air speed is security for a pilot.

The one thing you do not want to do is nose the aircraft over completely and nose dive into the ground.

Running an airline is a lot like flying an airplane and I’m afraid that Alan Joyce and QANTAS might have just aimed the nose of their aircraft, QANTAS, towards the ground.  

There is such a thing as taking a stand against labor actions and it can be a smart thing to do.  However, grounding your fleet to teach your employees a lesson really is a bit over the top.  Furthermore, hoping that your government will step in and make your employees play nice again is a bit optimistic. 

Oh, the labor actions may get stopped but now you’ve destroyed any good will you might have had as an employer.  You’ve pissed off tens of thousands customers and you lost millions of dollars.  If you are a shareholder or, say, a member of the government, what do you do?

Get rid of the polarizing figure in this mess.  That’s what.  You won’t necessarily fire the board itself but you can make a point by placing them under immense pressure to rid themselves of someone who can’t make a deal.  I think Alan Joyce isn’t long for this world as CEO of QANTAS.

Filed under: Airline News by ajax
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