Airlines Cash In as Flexible Work Changes Travel Patterns of Millions
Airline ticketing has long been a key component of the global economy, but that’s changing as consumers increasingly seek more flexible options to work from home or on the road.
The market has experienced multiple disruptions in the past few years, most notably during the 2016 presidential election, when the travel industry suffered huge losses and several companies faced steep tariffs.
Today, the market is experiencing a boom, with a record number of Americans working from home, and the industry’s ability to scale on demand has been one of the most successful models in finance.
The United Airlines (UAL) and Southwest Airlines (LUV) were some of the first airlines to introduce flexible work programs, which have provided millions of remote workers jobs at a time when the economy is struggling. In fact, many of the airlines’ new policies are designed to address a number of worker access issues, including how to handle the large amounts of data and how to better train employees.
“The flexible work market is growing. As the demand and supply grows it creates an interesting situation,” said Patrick Rochard, vice president of government and industry affairs at the Travel Industry Association. “As the demand for flexible work shifts to employees who are increasingly mobile and at home, airlines are seeing opportunities to further expand their flexible work programs.”
Here are some other examples of flexible work:
The global airline industry is expanding beyond the United States and into new regions. In 2015, UAL, which operates a fleet of 11 widebodies and one jumbo jet, expanded their U.S. hub network and introduced new routes out of New York City to Philadelphia, Portland, and Los Angeles. The airline also launched service to Mexico City, Denver, Houston, and San Francisco.
Southwest Airlines, which has three domestic routes, added four new routes to its network last year, expanding its flight network from 14 cities to 25 locations. One of the new routes in the region is a new daily nonstop service between Los Angeles and