welcome to bushworld… this is the kind of corporate behavior we can expect a lot more of now that cox is at the sec… this says it all… read it, weep, and pass it on… (this letter was originally posted on a privately-run, united airlines employee group site and has been cross posted at And, yes, I DO take it personally)
My name is Ellen Saracini. My husband Captain Victor J. Saracini was the captain of United Flight 175 that struck the south tower of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001 at 9:03 am. While no one could have imagined the events of that infamous day, neither could Victor have imagined what would be happening right now to his wife and his two daughters.
I was given a choice to sue the Airlines, Port Authority, and others, or join in the victims’ compensation fund set up by the government. I pledged I would not sue and proceeded with the fund; after all, this is the company Victor was so proud to work for and the same company of his United brothers and sisters. Every bit of preparation that Victor and I worked for was used against the claim. Life insurance was deducted. My full pension was deducted from the award. Now I will have a double jeopardy as I will again loose my pension with no recourse on either side.
During the last three years, my girls and I have been impacted more than words can explain. One daughter is in counseling, the other won’t talk, and both have medical problems stemming from the loss of their father while at the same time maintaining excellent grades in honors and AP courses. I have stood up and been an advocate on the steering committee of the terrorist’s lawsuits, gaining information to aid our Government. I have worked with APSA to defend our cockpits. I am fundraising for the Garden of Reflection, a memorial park dedicated to all we lost on that day. I have started a flight scholarship in Victors name to continue his legacy in flight. We are doing everything that can be done to make it better for all.
I can’t help but to ask myself at what point are companies allowed to take away so much from the lives of dedicated employees and their families? At what point does our Government step in and stop atrocities such as this before they are allowed to irrevocably change the lives of so many? I refuse to believe that this is the only solution that can be reached.The PBGC’s decision to allow United Airlines to end their pensions is just wrong. If this monumental verdict moves forward, I will be faced with many hardships. Victor was a proud United pilot, husband, father and friend who fought a war with terrorists. Never would he have imagined that he would have to fight for his family’s well-being with the very company he so proudly spread his wings.
Sincerely
Ellen Saracini
but the dearth of them on here is telling… this isn’t just about 9/11, this is about what, under bushco, is now the norm for organizational behavior in this country… corporations have been behaving badly for a very long time in the u.s. and, with bushco and cox, it has the potential for making enron look like a tea party…
are just not profitable businesses. That’s the main problem. We have to look at deregulation again, and see whether it makes sense.
the assholes that run them (and i can speak from intense and in-depth experience at united as an internal consultant), like the assholes that are busy looking out for their own portfolios in damn near every other corporation in this country, are NOT running them for the benefit of anyone but themselves…
i can remember a meeting with united’s corporate counsel where he was excusing himself constantly to check any movements on his stock holdings that were scrolling across the bottom of his computer screen… i’ve also worked with corporate compensation professionals who, not atypically, spend up to 80% of their time dealing with senior officer compensation “issues” (or, should i say, senior officer “whining”)…
sadly, all the regulated environment would provide would be the same clowns in a different circus with a large thread of lackadaisical management thrown in… it’s time we accepted the fact that, in this country, ALL of our organizations exhibit the same kinds of dysfunction and dis-ease that are exhibited in the rest of society… it’s US booman… we’re a very sick society…