Southwest Airlines Reviews

Cons

Technology is lacking at the airline

Cons

- Encourages a stifling, cult-like environment where real feedback is discouraged. - Speaking out against issues is met with harsh consequences. - Employees feel pressured to force happiness and agreement, even against their better judgment. - Voicing concerns that don't conform is detrimental to one's career. - Survival strategy: Maintain a façade of compliance, a similar to being a robot rather than a person. Smile, nod and pretend. Agree with everything and keep your mouth shut. - Inexperienced Team Leaders lacking basic people management skills lead to excessive micromanagement. - Your overall experience depends heavily on the competence of your leader. - Leadership quality varies significantly, with some leaders being less effective. - The absence of structure results in numerous illegal practices. - Examples include favoritism, exceptions for certain individuals, and other documented employment law violations. - Hiring guidelines appear to bend for specific individuals but not all, raising concerns. -Functions more like a small family-run enterprise than a billion-dollar corporation. -Leaders primarily arise from within the organization and ascend based on their seniority rather than their proficiency and aptitude for performing the role effectively. -Low salaries and no company sponsored incentives for ongoing education negatively affect job satisfaction. -A significant amount of bureaucracy necessitates multiple rounds of approvals to complete even the simplest of tasks.

Cons

Technology is still behind. Seems like Southwest is always playing catch-up on the tech side of things. Management-Union relations seems like it has gone downhill since I began (and it didn’t seem great when I started) - Always an uneasy tension when it comes time to talk contract with all of the union groups.

Cons

The rollercoaster of the last three years (drastic network cuts due to the pandemic, and then ramp up back to "normal" operations) can be challenging to process and absorb at time. But I trust that our Leadership has heard that feedback and that they're committed to a more steady growth pattern moving forward.

Cons

PTO is accrued versus allotted, and leads to many situations where you're forced to choose between an empty PTO bank or preserving your well-being The speed of change isn't always what it should be, especially when it's about new technologies that could improve customer and employee experience Operating as a low cost carrier can mean budgets are challenging, especially in periods of downturn

Cons

I like the job and the company, but my station is so disorganized. I often got paired with trainers that weren't even here and informed no one. Some trainers are really good and will take the time to make sure you feel comfortable. Others will try to rush and lecture if you do something wrong. Training is all over the place, everyday you train with someone different and they don't follow the company procedures. Which makes it difficult to learn the job especially if you've never worked in this industry. We're often being rushed to push flights out on time, eventhough the flight came in delayed or were waiting on bags/mx/pax boarding. Recently, we've been told to follow the ops agent to "help reduce delays" but this is creating more delays because you have teams on opposite ends of the airport and there is no one to bring the flights in. If don't show up for your flight you are threatened with being written up eventhough it takes a bit to walk from either side. They refuse to close the ramp when there's lightning so we can push out planes. That doesn't seem very safe. Some sups/management are very rude and have attitude problems.

Cons

It is a big company so sometimes you can get lost within the crowd. Sometimes changes for the better can take forever.

Cons

This company lacks management and leadership skills. Most new hires are either second generation sweat shop workers (AAR) or straight out of school. They pay you the highest industry rate because you will have the chance to ruin your career one of two ways. Hostile work environment ruins reputations and relationships. Outdated software and work environment means you will significantly have a higher chance of injuries and ruin your long term career. Stay far away risk injuries and reputation for $2 more than the other majors is not worth it. Keep your A&P safe.

Cons

-Hard to get a job here. Keep applying. Research the company and figure out a way in. I took a job that is below what I thought I deserved just so I could get into the company and work my way up through hard work and excellent delivery -Big companies like SWA take time to make change. Every change has a lot of complexity and downline dependencies

Cons

Please exercise caution when considering hotel accommodations while applying for a flight attendant position. The training program spans over a month, and I recently departed from a lodging experience that was far from satisfactory. The presence of roaches and bedbugs was prevalent, and despite my efforts to report this issue to the support services, their response unfortunately indicated their inability to relocate me to a different hotel. Regrettably, other candidates also encountered roach infestations in their rooms but were apprehensive about reporting the matter, fearing potential repercussions and being sent home. In the latest correspondence, I was informed that a 24-hour investigation was required, while I continued to suffer from bedbug bites. As a result, I secured an alternative hotel room for the night. However, the following morning, Southwest Airlines notified me that I had forfeited my training opportunity and would need to wait another year to reapply, solely due to securing a safe and clean room. This incident resulted in the loss of a valuable opportunity due to their negligence. Although the training program itself is commendable, the prospect of enduring such unacceptable accommodations for an entire month is unacceptable to me. Therefore, I believe it is crucial to consider these factors when making decisions about affiliating with a company like Southwest.