Southwest Airlines Employee Relations Paper

Labor-Management Relations at Southwest Airlines

Southwest Airlines believes that they are “a Family dedicated to our Employees, our Customers, and the communities we serve” (Southwest Airlines, 2010), and this sentiment appears to be evident in the attitudes their employees. The company states it contract bargaining philosophy is to “reach agreements that are rewarding for employees, have scheduling flexibility that allow the Company to operate efficiently in a highly competitive marketplace, and provide long-term job security” (Labor Relations, 2015). By creating an opportunity for employees to directly share in the company’s financial success, the company perpetuates their commitment to employee well-being and satisfaction. The company

2015) however, as we have discussed earlier in this class, employee satisfaction can mean a variety of things to different people. From an employer perspective, Southwest makes it clear that their vision of a satisfied employee is a worker who is energetic, engaged, passionate and feels that “their job is a calling, rather than just a job” (Weber). In fact, Southwest representatives have stated that they hire based largely on a candidate’s general attitude and enthusiasm, and then train these people for the skills that they will need to perform their everyday duties. Southwest places a large emphasis on employee satisfaction in their company and focuses on this by involving employees, making them feel engaged in the workings of the company among other things. The company also has a generous compensation plan including health, life insurance and retirement benefits, to name a few. In 2010 alone, the company’s contribution towards employee retirement plans was just under $350 million and employee participation was well above the national average. Contributions to plans which directly benefit the workers including profit sharing and 401(k) accounted for a large portion of these

I am very fortunate that I work for a company who, much like Southwest Airlines, stresses employee satisfaction. My employer has been on the Fortune Magazine top 100 places to work list the last three years in a row, and placed as high as number 27 in 2014. (ARI) Over the course of my career, I have worked for several companies however it is my current employer who stands out as a company that truly provides me with employee satisfaction. Certainly, given the choice, I would work for an employer like Southwest or ARI rather than an employer who doesn’t place the same emphasis on employee welfare. For me, the satisfaction I derive from my work comes in several ways including job and company security, a sense of being valued, and overall feeling that I am part of a team as well as the financial reward the comes from working for a company that is doing well. Ironically, I have a cousin, Bert Seither who is the chief pilot for southwest airlines. Over the last few years, we have had many conversations regarding the similarities in how our respective companies treat their employees, and common best practices. Both ARI and Southwest provide strong support programs for their employees including reward or incentive programs, ongoing training opportunities as well as excellent benefits including external schooling assistance or tuition