JetBlue Airlines 2004 Annual Report Download - page 21

Full-time equivalent employees at December 31, 2004 consisted of 897 pilots, 1,431 flight
attendants, 1,797 customer service and ramp operations personnel, 364 technicians, whom others refer
to as mechanics, 632 reservation agents, and 1,480 management and other personnel. At December 31,
2004, we employed 5,956 full-time and 1,443 part-time employees. Our employees are not unionized.
We enter into individual employment agreements with each of our FAA-licensed employees, which
consist of pilots, dispatchers and technicians. Each employment agreement is for a term of five years
and automatically renews for an additional five-year term unless either the employee or we elect not to
renew it by giving notice at least 90 days before the end of the relevant term. Pursuant to these
agreements, these employees can only be terminated for cause. In the event of a downturn in our
business, we are obligated to pay these employees a guaranteed level of income and to continue their
benefits if they do not obtain other aviation employment. In addition, in the event we are sold to or
consolidate with another company, we must request that the successor company place these employees
on a preferential hiring list. If such employees are not hired by the successor company, in some cases
they will be entitled to a severance payment of up to one year’s salary.
We believe that we carefully select, train and maintain a productive workforce of caring,
passionate, fun and friendly people who want to provide our customers with the best flying experience
possible. We assist our employees by offering them flexible work hours, initial paid training, free
uniforms and benefits that begin on the date they start work. We also provide extensive training for our
pilots, flight attendants, technicians, customer service agents, dispatchers and reservation agents which
emphasizes the importance of safety. In 2003, we began leadership training for all of our supervisors,
captains and managers because having the right leaders in place across our organization is important to
ensure our employees have the right tools and skills to support our customers. Part of our business
plan is to reward our people by allowing them to share in our success and align personal successes with
those of JetBlue. Our compensation packages include competitive salaries, wages and benefits, profit
sharing and an employee stock purchase plan. In addition, a significant number of our employees,
including FAA-licensed employees, participate in our stock option plan. We review our compensation
packages on a regular basis in an effort to ensure that we remain competitive and are able to hire and
retain the best people possible.
Maintenance
We have an FAA-approved maintenance program, which is administered by our technical
operations department. Consistent with our core value of safety, we hire qualified maintenance
personnel, provide them with comprehensive training and maintain our aircraft and associated
maintenance records in accordance with FAA regulations.
The maintenance performed on our aircraft can be divided into three general categories: line
maintenance, maintenance checks, and component overhaul and repair. Line maintenance consists of
routine daily and weekly scheduled maintenance checks on our aircraft, including pre-flight, daily,
weekly and overnight checks, and any diagnostics and routine repairs. Although the majority of our line
maintenance is performed by our own technicians, in certain circumstances we subcontract our line
maintenance to outside organizations.
Maintenance checks consist of more complex inspections and servicing of the aircraft that cannot
be accomplished during an overnight visit. These checks occur at least every 15 months and can range
in duration from a few days to approximately a month, depending on the magnitude of the work
prescribed in the particular check. We utilize Air Canada and TACA, in El Salvador, to perform our
maintenance checks under the oversight of our personnel. Our first scheduled heavy airframe structural
inspection occurred in December 2003.
Component overhaul and repair involves sending engines and certain parts, such as landing gear
and avionics, to third party FAA-approved maintenance repair stations for repair or overhaul. We have
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