by Mike Hall, Aug 28, 2008

With $2 water, $7 pillows and $25 checked-bag fees, when you get on an airplane these days you expect to see signs on the emergency oxygen mask compartments, “In case of emergency, swipe credit card.”

Passengers aren’t the only ones fed up with being nickled, dimed and dollared by the airlines. The Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA-CWA) and Air Line Pilots (ALPA) say if the airlines stopped handing out stock options, bonuses and perks and started making some sound business decisions, they’d have more money to pay the rising fuel costs—and maybe we could still get that pillow or water without shelling out.

Earlier this month, about a week after US Airways began charging passengers $2 for water and other non-alcoholic drinks, the airline announced it was bestowing more than $5.3 million in stock options to its top seven executives.

Here’s the kicker.

U.S. Airways Board of Directors Compensation Committee approved the 800,000 shares at an exercise price of $6.75 (the price at which they can buy the stock when they exercise the option) as a performance bonus. Says Mike Flores, president of the U.S. Airways East AFA-CWA:

It is disheartening to watch US Airways top executives enrich themselves with ‘performance’ based stock awards while flight attendants continue to work under a bankruptcy-driven contract that slashed wages and eliminated pensions and benefits.

Lisa LeCarre, president of US Airways West AFA-CWA, which represents the America West flight attendants in the recently merged airline, says the $5.3 million handout is

a slap in the face to the hard-working flight attendants who are facing job losses and have not received a simple cost-of-living increase in almost six years. It is also an affront to the passengers being nickel and dimed for such comforts as a glass of water. When will corporate America understand the devastating effects of this erosion on public and employee morale and trust?

Meanwhile, United Airlines, which had started charging $15 to check a first bag among other passenger fees earlier this year, announced it was not only raising the prices on most flights for those little snack and meal boxes that were already overpriced, but was discontinuing complimentary meal service for coach class passengers—most of us in the back of the plane—on long distance flights to Europe.

ALPA says the decision is a “disastrous business strategy” that’s likely to drive customers away. Says Capt. Steve Wallach, chairman of ALPA’s United Chapter:

Rather than taking the fundamental steps necessary to put our airline back on course, such as rationalizing the flight schedule or eliminating excessive perks and bonuses for executives, United’s leadership is penalizing the one constituency that is critical to our airline’s success: its loyal passengers. Instead of nickel-and-diming our passengers, United Airlines management should be demonstrating that despite today’s challenges, our passengers still come first.

Wallach says the meal decision is “just the latest of bad decisions” made by United CEO Glenn Tilton.

Glenn Tilton and his executives can be counted upon to select the path that inflicts the most misery on our passengers.

Visit GlennTilton.com, a website from United’s pilots that outlines the case for Tilton’s removal to sign a petition condemning the end of long-distance meal service, in flight crew reductions and other recent decisions.

Next time you fly, remember to carry some change for the rest room.

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