No joke

You may or may not be keeping up with Northwest Airline's recent labor trouble. They've been seeking concessions from their employees while in bankruptcy for months and have yet to come to a deal with its flight attendants. Recently a deadline came and went and Northwest had failed to reach an agreed upon concession package and sought court approval to abrogate, or terminate, the flight attendant's contract. They won that approval so the company imposed its own terms on the flight attendants and in turn the flight attendants have threatened to strike because their contract was abrogated. Northwest sued the flight attendants to block a strike but the judge turned down the company's request for an injunction and the flight attendants are set to begin striking Friday night.

In the meantime, to help other employees at the company get used to less pay, or even worse, help those that are getting the ax, the company set out to offer a gesture of good-will by providing employees with a booklet of 101 ways to save money. Following is a tid-bit my union shared with me:

"The second event of great significance has to do with the extraordinary/above and beyond detachment between upper management and the employees of Northwest Airlines, some of whom are soon to be left without jobs. Northwest published and began distributing a book that included a list of Â?101 Ways to Save Money.Â? On this list were suggestions for the about-to-be-laid-off employees such as creating your own holiday cards and gifts rather than buying them, borrowing a dress for Â?a big night out,Â? securing prescription drug samples from your doctor, and dumpster diving, or as the list advises, Â?DonÂ?t be shy about pulling something you like out of the trash.Â? Sixty pamphlets went out containing this list before Northwest began receiving complaints and removed it from the pamphlet it is distributing to NW employees."

Dumpster diving? Give me a freakin' break. I'll be the first to admit SpyC has dumpster dived before and even I became compelled one time while on an evening walk in our neighborhood. But to have your employer recommend it as a way to save money, especially for those about to be layed off? What a joke. As my union rep stated, "the extraordinary/above and beyond detatchment between upper management and the employees..."

Yeah, I'd say they are detatched. What was Northwest thinking? In the end, a strike for Northwest would be very bad news. However, I have no respect for that company, nor its management, and I wouldn't mind seeing them fold. The sad part is upper management could care less. They've got their golden parachutes just in case, and it's the front line employees that will pay most dearly. In which case I hope they make it.