Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Okay,... I'll... type... slower... this... time...
In the Comments section of the "I couldn't make this $#!% up if I tried..." essay, below, some anonymous stalker** declares...
Actually, you are making it up by ignoring the elephant in the room in your rant. I suppose the fact that you could have had this bonus and keep turning it down isn't important right?...thereby missing the entire point of my
The issue I was whining about wasn't the bonus, itself, it's the fact that our Executives change their bonus target metrics with the frequency of an AM radio station, while they keep ours etched in stainless steel and planted in industrial concrete.
I specifically recall when the "EIP" bonus came up in our initial negotiations with Onex, because it fell upon me to explain the history, and our problem with it, to Nigel Wright. Which I was more than happy to do, as this anti-union tool has been a continued annoyance ever since Boeing first implemented it in 2000 as an incentive to vote against the WTPU certification.
Mr Wright seemed to completely understand our objections and was quite clear in his position that the non-rep EIP bonus would continue to pay out more than the represented EIP... but stated that his plan going forward would be that the payouts would be "closer" than they'd been with Boeing: the maximums would still differ -- non-reps getting up to 40 days pay while union employees were limited to only 15, max -- but the metrics for payout would be identical: proportionate share over 12% EBIT. Which would mean that any year there was a performance bonus, all employees would receive a part, albeit ours a little more than a third of the non-reps.
And we could live with that; after all, we've got guaranteed raise pools in our contracts and the non-reps had already lost a raise earlier in 2005, which meant that they'd need at least a 3.5% bonus every year of their career to just stay even (and even greater bonuses should they miss out on a raise pool again). It seemed like a decent trade-off and we bought into it.
It's too bad we could only guarantee our own metrics in negotiations, however, because shortly after our contract was ratified, the non-rep (Execs, Mgmt, and non-rep Salaried) bonus metrics were changed to a combination of EBIT, cash flow, and 787 performance. The odd thing is, while our EBIT is similar, cash flow and 787 performance has absolutely sucked over the past few years and, yet, Execs and non-rep M&S have been granted bonuses in each of the years while the rest of the workforce has earned nothing.
How could that be? We have the same EBIT, their other metrics are in the dumper and they still get a bonus while the rest of the workforce doesn't? What's up wit' dat chit?
Well, for the second time in three years, Spirit Execs have gone to the Board and convinced them that due to exogenous events allegedly beyond their control -- acquiring the European facilities in 2006 and the Boeing strike last year -- they deserved to have their performance metrics modified to allow them to collect a bonus significantly larger than our Company performance would allow under their identified requirements.
As to reports of our so-called leaders trying to convince the Board to modify our performance metrics as they have done for their own, all I've heard thus far is the sound of crickets, holding their sides and laughing.
-- Bill, who doesn't think "closer" means what Mr. Wright thinks it means...
** - regarding my accusation of "stalker," I've not posted anything to this 'blog since last October and didn't let the grapevine know about these essays until late this afternoon, so apparently the poor dweeb who posted the comment this morning needs to get out more often and not spend time each and every day checking and obsessing over what I may or may not write here.
Comments:
Rant on WorkerUnit, Rant on!!!! Since the local "journalists" elect to not cover what is happening in Wichita aerospace, it remains on your shoulders to educate those few who care to know. For those who do not ... read "Orbiting the Giant Hairball", an interesting little book promoted years ago by Jeff Turner warning employees about getting caught up in the corporate speak of big companies and encouraging them to look at our business with a creative eye. Keep that creativity alive WorkerUnit!!
# posted by 
: 8:21 AM
: 8:21 AM
Very hyperbolicly done workerunit. I enjoy hyperbole too on occasion. I just enjoy facts, and people who take responsibility for their own actions, more.
# posted by : 5:27 PM
: 5:27 PM
Okay, Ace, I'll bite... just what part of my essay do you believe to not be fact?
As to responsibility, I agree with you and I think our Execs should step up, take responsibility, and admit that, yes, they doctored the books so they could take more of a bonus than their agreed-to performance metrics allowed.
I"d also like the Board to step forward and claim responsibility for allowing the Execs to take more of our profits than they deservered and to explain why the rest of the workforce didn't deserve a share as well.
As you demand taking responsibility, can I assume you agree as well?
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As to responsibility, I agree with you and I think our Execs should step up, take responsibility, and admit that, yes, they doctored the books so they could take more of a bonus than their agreed-to performance metrics allowed.
I"d also like the Board to step forward and claim responsibility for allowing the Execs to take more of our profits than they deservered and to explain why the rest of the workforce didn't deserve a share as well.
As you demand taking responsibility, can I assume you agree as well?
