DALLAS- Southwest Airlines (WN) is addressing overstaffing at select airports by offering voluntary separation to certain ground operations, cargo, and provisioning employees.
The staffing surplus, attributed to aircraft delivery delays, affects nearly 20 airports where Southwest maintains a significant presence, along with certain roles at its headquarters.
Southwest Voluntary Separation Scheme
Aviation analyst JonNYC first reported this development. In a staff update, Chris Johnson, Vice President of Ground Operations, along with Vice Presidents Cole McGuire and Wally Devereaux, confirmed that the voluntary separations aim to adjust staffing to the airline’s current needs.
They noted that delays in aircraft delivery and capacity reductions had led to overstaffing in some locations, prompting the introduction of the 2024 Voluntary Separation Program (VSP 24) to maintain the company’s long-term stability.
The VSP 24 applies to eligible contracted and non-contracted employees, including customer service, ramp, cargo, and provisioning agents. The offer also extends to roles such as operations agents, ramp supervisors, provisioning supervisors, assistant managers, and operations managers.
Southwest Airlines will provide VSP 24 package details to eligible employees at 18 airports, including:
- Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL)
- Buffalo Niagara International Airport (BUF)
- Hollywood Burbank Airport (BUR)
- Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI)
- Cleveland Hopkins International Airport (CLE)
- Corpus Christi International Airport (CRP)
- Dallas Love Field (DAL)
- Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (DTW)
- Fort Lauderdale–Hollywood International Airport (FLL)
- Los Angeles International Airport (LAX)
- Long Beach Airport (LGB)
- Miami International Airport (MIA)
- Myrtle Beach International Airport (MYR)
- Portland International Airport (PDX)
- Southwest Florida International Airport (RSW)
- San José Mineta International Airport (SJC)
- John Wayne Airport (SNA)
- Tampa International Airport (TPA)
Network Reshuffle
The voluntary separation offer aligns with Southwest’s planned workforce reduction in Atlanta, where it intends to eliminate over 300 pilot and flight attendant positions by April 2024.
The airline is under pressure from Elliott Investment Management, which holds a 10% stake in Southwest, to increase revenue.
Dallas-based carrier also made changes to its board as requested by Elliott. It appointed Rakesh Gangwal, co-founder of India’s largest low-cost carrier IndiGo Airlines (6E), as its new independent board chair.
Vice Presidents Chris Johnson, Cole McGuire, and Wally Devereaux encouraged eligible employees nearing retirement or those interested in personal pursuits to consider VSP 24. Southwest’s Dallas headquarters will also receive information on this program. All selected staff will have several weeks to evaluate the package.
Southwest, responding to capacity reductions and aircraft delivery delays, has slowed new hiring. The spokesperson told Simple Flying, VSP 24, and a hiring freeze aim to prevent overstaffing. Employees accepting VSP 24 will have a resignation date of December 30, 2024.
CEO Bob Jordan disclosed on an October 24 call with analysts that Southwest is working closely with regulators and vendors to certify new premium cabin configurations. The airline aims to introduce these premium services by 2026 as part of its strategy to boost competitiveness and achieve profitability targets.
Stay tuned with us. Further, follow us on social media for the latest updates.
Join us on Telegram Group for the Latest Aviation Updates. Subsequently, follow us on Google News
