Staff ask head to stay

Press, 31 October 1981, Page 2

Staff ask head to stay

PA . Auckland Air New Zealand staff want Mr John Wisdom to stay as the airline’s chief executive.

Mr Wisdom has said he will step down at the end of this year/ The combined union and staff group has writen to the airline’s board expressing confidence in Mr Wisdom’s management. The group, representing 11 unions and staff associations, met senior airline management staff yesterday morning about the company’s economy moves. Mr Wisdom had been due to retire a year ago. He was asked to stay with the airline after the release of the Mahon report and the resignation of the then chief executive, Mr M. R. Davis. Four of five people have been shortlisted for Mr Wisdom’s job, including at least two senior men in the airline and a Briton.

About 300 applied for the position. One of the members of the staff group, Mr lan Hambley, representing flight cabin staff, said yesterday that Mr

Wisdom had done a “firstclass job in extremely difficult circumstances.”

Mr Hambley said that although staff realised Mr Wisdom had a “caretaker” role they believed it important that he remain Ij the job for a while so thB ; continuity could be maintSned. Air New Zealand’s board would probably discuss who will be its next chief executive at its meeting on November 20, a spokesman said yesterday. The spokesman said talks were progressing satisfactorily among members of the joint management-union committee set up to discuss the company’s redundancy and cost-cutting proposals. The committee was set up last week after the airline announced the imminent closing of its Wellington-Aus-tralia services, and the possible loss of 300 jobs. It began discussions last Friday on cost-saving recommendations from both the company and its staff. These continued on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, and are expected to resume late next week.