JetBlue has had a rough several years, coming out of the pandemic. The airline has struggled with profitability, and the current management team is trying to right the ship. Along those lines, JetBlue CEO Joanna Geraghty made some interesting comments to employees in recent days, addressing the frustration that so many JetBlue employees feel.
In this post:
JetBlue CEO acknowledges low employee morale
@xJonNYC reports on some interesting comments recently made by JetBlue’s CEO, in a conversation with employees. According to this report, Geraghty got surprisingly candid, saying:
“When you’re not profitable for six years, you don’t feel like you’re winning. We need to get everyone onboard with JetForward, to see it’s working and we’re moving in a more positive direction. It’s not just limited to inflight, it’s also at corporate, where people are like ‘another year of no profitability and then there will be a seventh to be clear,’ and probably an eighth. So we’re in a very challenging situation.”
Even when an airline is in a tough spot, it’s rare to see an airline CEO get that honest about the state of things, both in terms of reflecting on the current reality of employee morale, and in terms of being honest about future prospects.
I have faith in JetBlue’s current management team
Keep in mind that JetBlue CEO Joanna Geraghty and JetBlue President Marty St. George have been in their current roles for just over a year now, and they’ve certainly had their work cut out for them.
For one, previous JetBlue CEO Robin Hayes just seemed to be living on a different planet in terms of his priorities. He was more obsessed with sexy Europe flying and taking over Spirit, than on actually running a reliable operation, and trying to improve yields for the core of the carrier’s business. The company just totally lacked a strategy under him.
So not only have Geraghty and St. George been faced with that reality, but they’ve also dealt with how post-pandemic demand patterns have evolved, as those haven’t been kind to smaller airlines.
I think JetBlue’s current management team has the right approach, though perhaps my only criticism is that I think they’re moving too slow. For example, I think JetBlue desperately needs to introduce first class ASAP, given the markets the airline operates in. The fact that JetBlue hasn’t historically offered first class on non-Mint routes borders on criminal.
There’s no reason that JetBlue shouldn’t be able to get into Alaska’s league when it comes to margins, and I think JetBlue is slowly learning that lesson. From investing in its loyalty program, to introducing first class, my hope is that JetBlue will be a much healthier airline a few years down the road. The new United partnership is an interesting angle as well, and hopefully Star Alliance membership is next.
Bottom line
In a discussion with employees, JetBlue’s CEO has acknowledged the low morale at the company, and the lack of “winning.” The airline has been losing money for years, but the management team is trying to improve things. Admittedly it’s a long road, though. I commend Geraghty for her efforts, and hope things keep moving in the right direction.
What do you make of Geraghty’s comments?
I posted this on other sites but it is relevant to understanding what is going on at B6 which continues to lose share even in its core markets.
The Port Authority of NYNJ just released April traffic statistics and they highlight how big of an issue the runway reconstruction project has been.
In April, DL overtook UA as the largest airline at the 3 airports with a 24.7% share compared to UA’s 24.1%....
I posted this on other sites but it is relevant to understanding what is going on at B6 which continues to lose share even in its core markets.
The Port Authority of NYNJ just released April traffic statistics and they highlight how big of an issue the runway reconstruction project has been.
In April, DL overtook UA as the largest airline at the 3 airports with a 24.7% share compared to UA’s 24.1%. DL’s traffic was up less than 1% but UA’s was down 5.3%. AA’s was up 5.4% with a 12.6% share. B6 gave up over 10% of their region traffic.
At EWR, UA’s traffic was down 7% but ironically DL’s was up 7.5%. Most carriers had traffic decreases. DL’s EWR share was only 4.2% compared to 68% for UA. The airport as a whole was down 6.4% in traffic.
JFK traffic for all airlines was up just under 1% with DL’s share at almost 30% compared to B6 at 23% and AA at 12%.
LGA was the winner in all of it. Airport traffic was down less than 1% but AA, DL, UA and WN all had healthy increases with AA up almost 19% which was similar to UA’s increase. DL’s LGA share at 44% is well ahead of AA at 25.6%. The other LCCs and ULCCs all had large losses so LGA is becoming more concentrated in the hands of the big 4. WN is the 3rd largest airline at LGA but their share is 1/5th of DL’s.
B6 continues to be unable to post gains and AA has once again returned to the 3rd place position in NYC.
These moves will only grow in May and into June; based on Kirby’s comments about how UA is having to discount to get people back to EWR, the chances are high that AA and DL will have very strong summers at LGA and JFK.
This runway reconstruction project at EWR should have been a one-time low key reduction in traffic at EWR but it has and will result in a larger shift of traffic back to LGA and JFK and to AA and DL, the former of which Kirby was so determined to wound with the B6 announcement.
Joanna has been in management at JetBlue for decades, she bears much of the blame. She is a skilled attorney who never accepts blame for her own fault and failures. That is why morale is low.
I give credit to Ms Joanna and Mr Marty for giving the airline new direction.
They have one hell of a rabbit hole to climb out of based on Mr Robin's p*ss poor prior management.
They have:
- culled the headcount with early out packages
- trimmed the schedule to the bone (LAX took the brunt)
- dealt with the P&W geared turbofan engine issue (airframes sitting on the ground)
I give credit to Ms Joanna and Mr Marty for giving the airline new direction.
They have one hell of a rabbit hole to climb out of based on Mr Robin's p*ss poor prior management.
They have:
- culled the headcount with early out packages
- trimmed the schedule to the bone (LAX took the brunt)
- dealt with the P&W geared turbofan engine issue (airframes sitting on the ground)
- went shopping for a partner (not too excited about UA, but a deal is a deal)
- deflected Carl Icahn (take note Southwest)
Considering the above, I can imagine morale is below the happy face level.
Well, get over it...its the nature of the beast!!
Enjoy the ride!!
very well said.
and the whole Geared Turbofan issue has impacted low cost carriers including NK worse than carriers like DL which have had enough aircraft to compensate for GTF problems - and DL is also the Pratt and Whitney MRO provider for the GTF. So, yes, smaller carriers like JBLU have been very negatively impacted by the GTF issue and I don't think they will ever be fully compensated for the impact.
I still...
very well said.
and the whole Geared Turbofan issue has impacted low cost carriers including NK worse than carriers like DL which have had enough aircraft to compensate for GTF problems - and DL is also the Pratt and Whitney MRO provider for the GTF. So, yes, smaller carriers like JBLU have been very negatively impacted by the GTF issue and I don't think they will ever be fully compensated for the impact.
I still believe that the UA deal might put just enough more wind under B6' wings to help them restructure as they have planned - and they will ultimately be fine.
It does take time to recover from years of strategic misdirection but, like you, I believe that B6 has the leadership now to go the right direction
B6 has not had decent leadership for most if not all of its 25 years with the previous set of "leaders" unable to articulate a path forward and unable to execute on what B6 had decided was its niche - a premium leisure airline.
Their service delivery has been well below average according to DoT data and they have yet to fix the problem but the current mgmt team recognizes the problem.
as with AA,...
B6 has not had decent leadership for most if not all of its 25 years with the previous set of "leaders" unable to articulate a path forward and unable to execute on what B6 had decided was its niche - a premium leisure airline.
Their service delivery has been well below average according to DoT data and they have yet to fix the problem but the current mgmt team recognizes the problem.
as with AA, though, there is a point where you can't realistically regain your leadership in a highly competitive industry.
It is far from clear - even with a nudge from UA - that B6 can be competitive w/ DL, B6' most direct competitor, let alone exceed them.
Over the years this has become my take. I'm responsible for my job not the entire company. I don't get paid the C level bucks to worry about profitability. If I get laid off I'll go work somewhere else. In the end you're just a clog in the wheel so why get down on the big picture.
My corporate BS detector is going really wild on this one.
This story seems incomplete. It's encouraging that management acknowledges poor morale, but where is any amelioration ? Not even a 'hang in there' ? Almost seems like it's not going to get better for a couple more years so .... ( so get used to it ? ) ...
Slow down JetBlue, Elliott can only skin one sheep at a time
It's been a lot of fun watching Noo Yawk's Hometown Airline die on its feet. And to prop them up, who do they turn to? Chicago's Hometown Airline. The feeling of smug satisfaction is quite nice.
Coming from a chicago airline that has gone bankrupt how many times?
Once. And it survived, thrived, and grew.
Try again. UA is made up of many originating airlines that have had many bankruptcies. At the UA-CO merger, United was led by Texans from CO. They got thrown out and now United is led by... you guessed it. Another guy from Houston.
Spare everyone your ignorant Chicago vs NYC nonsense when United hasn't been led by a former UA person since 2010 (since nearly their last bankruptcy). If you want to give benefit...
Try again. UA is made up of many originating airlines that have had many bankruptcies. At the UA-CO merger, United was led by Texans from CO. They got thrown out and now United is led by... you guessed it. Another guy from Houston.
Spare everyone your ignorant Chicago vs NYC nonsense when United hasn't been led by a former UA person since 2010 (since nearly their last bankruptcy). If you want to give benefit to a geographic portion of the US (why anyone would who knows... it's weird), "Chicago's hometown airline" has been led by Texas companies or by former AA people (or from Houston). To include a current CEO that has no desire to live in Chicago. And still has his primary residence in Dallas.
Know your facts before you troll
But hey... if you're lucky. United won't move to Denver. ;) But don't count on it. Chicago is a dying city on just about every metric.
Chicago: I feel bad for you.
New York: I don't think about you at all.
I think JetBlue should have partnered up with Alaska. Except for the different aircraft the synergies are impressive and combined they could form an airline that could viably compete against the Big 3.
A good competitor keeps that from happening. B6 sniffs around VX, and AS swoops in. F9 sniffs around NK and B6 swoops in. AA sniffs around B6 and UA swoops in.
But you're right, the B6-AS combo could've been nice, albeit weak in the middle of the country.
I used to love jetBlue - but had a really bad experience FLL-BOS and their 'service recovery' just made the entire experience even worse. I think they're a disgraceful and dishonest airline.
But that aside, I don't think that it's well run. They have an enviable position at JFK but sell a premium product at a standard price. Little wonder that they have been losing money. All that investment in innovation and passenger comfort and...
I used to love jetBlue - but had a really bad experience FLL-BOS and their 'service recovery' just made the entire experience even worse. I think they're a disgraceful and dishonest airline.
But that aside, I don't think that it's well run. They have an enviable position at JFK but sell a premium product at a standard price. Little wonder that they have been losing money. All that investment in innovation and passenger comfort and zero commercial or financial benefit.
Honestly speaking, JetBlue doesn’t have a corporate fatigue issue. They have a quite quiting or lazy work culture. I have more than a handful of friends who take max benefit of JetBlue’s very generous 14 day work from home policy, for them it’s work from anywhere. They are constantly vacationing - frankly I wonder when they work. I’ve never seen them on a laptop or take a work call ever.
Just because you are...
Honestly speaking, JetBlue doesn’t have a corporate fatigue issue. They have a quite quiting or lazy work culture. I have more than a handful of friends who take max benefit of JetBlue’s very generous 14 day work from home policy, for them it’s work from anywhere. They are constantly vacationing - frankly I wonder when they work. I’ve never seen them on a laptop or take a work call ever.
Just because you are an airline company doesn’t mean you aren’t a company or a corporation,
This is valid, and the blame lies with their talent strategy. JetBlue corporate salaries are exceptionally low for the NY market. Additionally, the company has been unable to offer even modest raises or bonuses to large amounts of its staff for many years. A lack of performance incentives combined with minimal advancement opportunities unfortunately results in a “status quo” culture where employees are discouraged from contributing beyond the bare minimum. JetBlue needs to return to...
This is valid, and the blame lies with their talent strategy. JetBlue corporate salaries are exceptionally low for the NY market. Additionally, the company has been unable to offer even modest raises or bonuses to large amounts of its staff for many years. A lack of performance incentives combined with minimal advancement opportunities unfortunately results in a “status quo” culture where employees are discouraged from contributing beyond the bare minimum. JetBlue needs to return to profitability so they can invest in their talent and build a high performing culture.
and partnering with another airline with poor morale and treatment of employees