April 24, 2003

Soon, the American Airlines Board of Directors will decide the fate of its  chairman and CEO, Donald J. Carty. Many want Mr. Carty fired for not notifying them of a sweet compensation package for key executives, while the company faced bankruptcy. To make things worse, while designing the "package", he was warning employees they had to give up part of their income to save the company.

The  labor unions did their part to save the company by agreeing to pay cuts totaling about $1.8 billion. For employees, this means salary cuts between 15 and 23 percent. Certainly a sincere effort.

Mr. Carty's attempt at "damage control" after he was caught has not been successful. His apologies sound hollow and insincere.

Now, the unions said they may reconsider their ratified contracts and retract them in light of the executive package scandal. His reacted by saying the ratified contracts were legal and he would go to court to enforce them. What an attitude!

A company is only as good as its leaders and executives. They seem to be morally bankrupt at American Airlines.  Successful companies develop trust between management and employees. There is none at American Airlines.

This problem can be solved by Chapter 11 bankruptcy requiring court oversight. At least someone would be looking at the company's management.

Oh yeah... the Board should fire Mr. Carty with no severance package or protected pension.