Travel recovery watch: International travel and spending up says Department of Commerce

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Last May, 3.6 million non-stop air passengers left the United States, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. Who cares? Well, the travel industry does, as this indicates an 8 percent year-over-year increase and the fifth month to show a gain since December 2009. The top outbound markets were Europe, the Caribbean, Asia and Mexico. Air travel was up for the Caribbean, Asia and Mexico, with Europe posting a decline of 1 percent year-over-year for the month of May. Departures to Mexico, the Middle East and Oceania showed the strongest growth: 68 percent, 19 percent and 12 percent, respectively.

For the first five months of this year, outbound air traffic ticked 3 percent higher compared to the same period in 2009, hitting 15.1 million. And, positive growth occurred in five of the eight overseas regions, the U.S. Department of Commerce reports.

While the growth story is solid, don’t forget that were measuring against a severely depressed baseline. Travel and tourism spending was in the tank last year, following the global financial crisis triggered in September 2008. Though the numbers are headed in the right direction, the road to a full recovery remains long.

What is interesting is that more Americans are traveling, and they’re spending more while doing so, showing that the travel market recovery may have some legs. U.S. travelers spent $2.4 billion on foreign air carriers in May 2010, a year-over-year surge of 19 percent.

[photo by uggboy via Flickr]

Are airline passengers getting ruder? Deal with it!

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Recent mayhem in the skies has obviously raised the question of whether passengers are getting ruder, and the consensus seems to be that we are. The average passenger may cite fuller planes, less room in overhead compartments and an endless array of fees as reasons for the lack of courtesy, not to mention an increasingly tough gauntlet from the curb to the gate. And, the cabin crew will probably lament the inability to work effectively with passengers who have increasingly absurd demands and hostile behavior.

What nobody seems to realize, however, is that this issue is not unique to the airlines.

Think about it: when times are tough for a company or sector, everyone becomes unhappy. Difficult market conditions leave employees stressed, as they worry about their jobs, don’t get raises and, as the cliché goes, have to “do more with less.” And, customers become increasingly demanding because every dollar they spend is more important, especially if you don’t know whether you’ll still have reliable income in the near future.
Does this sound like the airline industry? Of course. Passengers are looking at every expense carefully, whether they are traveling for leisure (personal expenditure) or business (where they have to answer to the finance department). They want more for less … and become frustrated by the fact that service and amenities are actually declining as ancillary fees are on the rise. This is the sort of situation that will make passengers ruder, and indeed, it has.

Meanwhile, there is no shortage of stories about flight attendant meltdowns. Some of the people involved, of course, were probably wacky before economic conditions worsened, but it’s safe to assume that the implications of the recession for the aviation business have contributed to the likelihood of the insane and the absurd breaking out among airline employees.

Now, let’s think about business in general, outside the airline business. The same rules apply. Customers and clients become more difficult, more demanding, when times are tough. Having conducted business following the bursting of two bubbles (dotcom and structured finance), I’ve seen – and experienced – just how challenging it can be to keep your cool. But, the smarter folks in just about any business find a way to do so. Why? Because they realize that without their clients, they’d have no cash coming in. So, there’s a lot of anger behind smiles, tongue-biting and carefully concealed strained patience.

What matters, though, is the commitment to service levels. Professionals realize that the rudeness of their customers or clients does not change their own obligations to deliver the necessary product or service. If they fall short, the revenue sources (rude or not) will dry up. And, it’s better to have rude people paying you than none at all.

In the airline sector or anywhere else, there is no tacit or explicit obligation for customers to be polite, except for common courtesy, which is convention more than obligation. So, are passengers getting ruder? Of course. Does it matter? Not at all.

[photo by hoyasmeg via Flickr]

Five reasons flight attendants should become Wal-Mart greeters

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Flight attendant complaints about compensation are not unusual, but they’ve certainly gained momentum with the recent admission of food stamp use by one. Sure, it’s a low-paying gig – the average income of $35,000 isn’t what newbies to the friendly skies are pulling down. Some make less than $20,000 a year, which is tough in just about any part of the country. The work isn’t easy, especially for the thin comp. So, it does make me wonder why more haven’t quit and picked up easier jobs for the same pay.

Maybe it makes more sense to become a greeter at Wal-Mart? If the pay is comparable and the life isn’t as hard, why not?

Based on federal minimum wage of $7.25 and the 70-hour work week I’ve heard flight attendants claim, that comes to $507.50 a week and $25,375 a year. This assumes two weeks off unpaid (for mental health) and no overtime, since the work may have to be split across two Wal-Mart locations, because of shift availability.

How do the two gigs stack up? Well, becoming a greeter might just be the perfect alternative to pushing the beverage cart.1. The financials
While a 70-hour work week at Wal-Mart, at $25,375 (with no overtime pay), does fall short of the $35,000 or so average flight attendant compensation, it does stack up against starting pay at some carriers reasonably well. And let’s face it: you can’t expect to start at the top, right? Now if you build in some time-and-a-half, you’re looking at $39,875 in greeter pay at minimum wage. My advice: flight attendants choosing this route should opt for a Wal-Mart location that is short-staffed.

2. No prolonged customer exposure
While a flight attendant can be trapped working on a plane for hours with the same loathsome people, the greeter only deals with customers on the way in and may notice them on the way out. The interaction is fleeting, making it difficult to become annoyed by the personality types that can stand out in the cabin three hours into a trans-Atlantic flight.

3. Still responsible for safety
As any soldier will tell you, it’s tough to move from a job where people’s lives are on the line to one in which what is considered a high priority doesn’t involve the risk of fatality. I’m sure this is an issue for flight attendants, as well. The good news is that Wal-Mart greeters can see their share of life-or-death action, especially when there’s a big sale. Think back to the 2008 Black Friday death at the Wal-Mart in Queens if you need proof. Also, there’s always a chance one of the “people of Wal-Mart” will have a heart attack before making it through the door. Time to spring into action!

4. No union nightmares
Flight attendants who lament insufficient union protection won’t have to worry about that at Wal-Mart, which isn’t exactly friendly to organized labor. If you think something of value is lost in this arrangement, look back to point #1 above. Flight attendants looking to trade one polyester uniform for another will get by just fine with federal minimum wage protection.

5. Nobody’s griping for an upgrade
Why not? Well, I have no idea how you could possibly be upgraded in any Wal-Mart transaction. So, you can be sure the usual collection of white-collar business travelers won’t be bothering you at the door for priority of entry or a better shopping cart.

What can flight attendants in Manhattan do? Wal-Mart is conspicuously absent from this borough, making it one of the few places in the country that isn’t home to one of this American institution’s stores. Well, there are countless Starbucks locations, and they’ll even teach you how to make a latte!

[photo by FaceMePLS via Flickr]

Some flight attendants worse than drunk passengers says survey

by Tom Johansmeyer on

“Surly demeanor” is what bugs passengers most about flight attendants, confirming any suspicion anyone’s ever had about customer service in the airline industry. More than 5,100 readers weighed in on a USA Today survey, with 38 percent saying that attitude was the worst part of dealing with flight attendants.

What else can’t we stand about flight attendants? According to USA Today, 21 percent of respondents can’t stand flight attendants “gabbing together in the back”, with 20 percent irritated when they won’t deal with “unruly passengers.” Twelve percent of passengers are annoyed by the “schoolmarm attitude” and 9 percent by drink and food service that isn’t fast enough. I suspect the 9 percent result would have been higher if so many amenities hadn’t been cut during the recession … which has effectively eased the workload.

The results were surprising, according to the article, which thought passengers would be irked by flight attendants who won’t deal with problematic passengers, but it seems we don’t like flight attendants more than we don’t like our fellow fliers:

I thought refusing to deal with bothersome passengers would come out higher; that’s what irks me most. I rarely have seen an FA challenge an obnoxious drunk, the person who hogs more than his or her share of space or the loud talker who clearly is making the flight miserable for anyone within earshot.

[photo by alexindigo via Flickr]

EasyJet bans disabled, French government mad

by Tom Johansmeyer on

EasyJet isn’t letting unaccompanied disabled passengers onto its flights, and the French government is furious. It’s threatening the airline with sanctions “with the greatest severity” for leaving these passengers on the ground. The government response was triggered by EasyJet‘s refusing to allow three passengers on flights after they bought tickets, citing safety concerns.

In a statement by the French transport ministry reported by the Sydney Morning Herald, “EasyJet cannot hide behind safety regulations for refusing to board passengers who have difficulty moving around.” It continued, “It must implement solutions adapted to each case, as most companies do. Otherwise it must be sanctioned with the greatest severity.”

EasyJet says it’s in discussion with the French government to work out a solution but noted through a spokeswoman, “European regulations oblige us to evacuate an aircraft in 90 seconds so we are authorised to ask someone to accompany (those needing assistance) to assure the safety of the person and the passengers.”

[photo by twinkleboi via Flickr]