Originally Posted by
ROFF
After 4+ years I’m giving serious consideration of another airline. After seeing what’s happening at other airlines in terms of upgrades, progression and contracts it’s hard to ignore what’s happening here. The arrogance of management has me wondering about the future of this company and prospects for a fulfilling career. There were certain draws here several years ago that made up for some shortcomings but navigating this COVID crisis has shown that this company is NOT the company many of us thought it was.
Thoughts?
If it were me, in retrospect, with only four years at SWA, I would leave.
Since day one here, people have always said, “but, the flexibility.” As Zap explained, the flexibility around here is a bit of a myth. I don’t think it’s a reason to stay compared to the expanding opportunities and advantages compared to SWA offered at other major airlines and cargo carriers.
IMO, SWA has always suffered from what has been described as “SWA exceptionalism.” That is, the mostly groundless belief that it’s somehow a superior destination versus other airlines. It may have been true for a period during the early and mid-00’s, but it has faded tremendously. If you ask me, SWA has been mainly riding on the coattails of its mid-00’s success for years now while slowly becoming more and more inbred. Both management and the pilot group seem to be content with basking in the sentimental glow of that moment in the sun, which is quickly approaching 20 years in the past now. The result is an anachronistic, failing, back slapping good ol’ boy of an organization with its head sunk deep in the Texas mud. SWA is kinda like a 40-something guy who unironically and proudly still wears his Ed Hardy t-shirts out and about.