Southwest Airlines’ (NYSE:LUV) new CEO Bob Jordan has taken on the task of guiding the carrier out of the COVID pandemic after two bruising years.
The 61-year-old Jordan, who took the reins Tuesday, has 34 years of experience working at Southwest, overseeing a host of initiatives including Southwest’s network expansion and the airline’s acquisition of AirTran. His career has spanned paper tickets to mobile boarding passes.
He replaces Gary Kelly, becoming the Dallas airline’s sixth CEO in its five-decade history. Kelly, 66, is staying on as executive chairman after more than 17 years as CEO, completing a succession plan unveiled last June.
Jordan faces a host of challenges: a profit-crimping surge in expenses from fuel to salaries, strained relationships with labour, hiring struggles, the slow return of business travel, and ensuring the airline doesn’t repeat costly operational meltdowns of 2021.
Southwest is already trying to address some of its problems, raising minimum wages to $17 from $15 an hour to try to staff up. Jordan has said the airline plans to hire 8,000 people this year, after 5,000 last year, partially the result of losing thousands of workers in the pandemic at the company’s urging, in a bid to cut its labour bill.
Management faces contract talks with unions that represent its pilots and flight attendants. Both groups have complained about fatigue from grueling schedules and being steamrolled by pandemic policy changes.
LUV shares dipped 41 cents to $44.78.
