The leader of Southwest Airline’s labor relations team announced his retirement, after four years with the company and over 50 years experience in the aviation industry.
Randy Babbitt, senior vice president of labor relations, announced his retirement Tuesday. Babbit had been a fierce defender of CEO Gary Kelly and COO Mike Van de Ven, after four unions representing the employees of Southwest called for their ouster earlier this summer.
Jon Weaks, president of the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association, said that, “We are glad to see his [Babbitt] departure, his presence has been a hindrance to negotiations progress.”
Southwest employees are currently undergoing tense negotiations with management. The employees have been engaged in collective bargaining and contract negotiations for over four years, and claim that they are not being compensated justly while Southwest earns record profits.
The union representing Southwest’s pilots penned an open letter in late July, and asked the company’s CEO and COO to resign in a 20-0 vote of no confidence. The union’s vote of no confidence and calls to ouster the top executives were supported by the unions representing other employees of the air line, including the flight attendants, baggage handlers and mechanics. Southwest management characterized the no confidence vote and calls for the CEO to resign as nothing more than a negotiation tactic.
“We wish Randy all the best in his retirement after a long and distinguished career in aviation,” Van de Ven said in a statement released following his announcement. “We are grateful for his many contributions.”
Babbit had a long, storied career in the industry. He started out as a pilot for Eastern Airlines in 1966, joined the Air Line Pilots Association and spent time consulting. President Barack Obama selected him to head the FAA in 2009, a post that Babbit resigned from two years later after a drunk driving incident in suburban Washington, D.C. A judge dropped the drunken driving charge due to questionable circumstances surrounding the traffic stop.
The following year, in 2012, Babbit joined Southwest Air Lines as its chief negotiator, where he reached contracts with six union groups representing Southwest employees.
Babbit said he would work with his team on a transition before his departure in the fall.
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