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May 24, 2007
Hawaiian Airlines announced it is cutting nearly 140 positions. The company's president said the difficult decision came after a six-month review of the management structure.
It has been a bumpy ride in recent years for Hawaii's oldest airline, from bankruptcy to the decision to outsource jobs. Now there are more layoffs.
"Today is obviously a difficult day for those affected. A sad day for everybody. But it's important as a business that we make these decisions," said Hawaiian Airlines CEO Mark Dunkerley.
Hawaiian cut 136 non-union positions; 38 of those jobs were unfilled. The cutbacks will save the company about $4 million a year.
"The main motivation for this isn't actually savings year-on-year," explained Dunkerley. "I think more importantly, it's a realignment of our people to make sure that we're meeting the needs of the business going forward.
"This is the kind of thing an airline has to do to trim itself so it can be there in the long run," said former airline pilot and author Peter Forman.
To save money Hawaiian decided to outsource most of its call center, IT and accounting jobs to Philippines and India.
"Hawaiian's flights are close to 90 percent full. They just can't get more people on board. The prices of the tickets are pretty much dictated by the market. So they've lost money last year in order to make a profit now they're gonna have to cut costs," said Forman.
In December, Island Air laid off or furloughed about 65 workers to survive the airfare war started by new carrier go! Airlines.
"We're dealing with rising fuel costs and low fares, but Hawaiian Airlines' financial situation nonetheless is pretty good," said Dunkerley.
"I think this fare war will not go on forever interisland, so one way or the other I think it's gonna improve down the road and Hawaiian will be around to take advantage of it," said Forman.
About 40 of the affected workers are based outside of Hawaii. The company now has just under 3,500 employees.
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