# Big rich companies doing wrong by their employees, customers or other stakeholders during COVID-19 **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [March 25, 2020, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-rich-companies-doing-wrong-by-their-employees-customers-or-other-stakeholders-during-covid-19/850232 "2020-03-25T04:16:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![robby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robby/32/11048_2.png) [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2020, 5:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-rich-companies-doing-wrong-by-their-employees-customers-or-other-stakeholders-during-covid-19/850232/61 "2020-04-15T05:52:21Z")
> [@polar\_bear](#): > > Since this is the Pit: fuck you. > > There is no reasonable way for any major airline to refund tickets right now. Every single one of them is doing everything it can to stay afloat…in these days of not being allowed to operate their business. > > It is entitled dicks like you, that are trying to destroy industries. > > Verstuurd vanaf mijn moto g(6) met Tapatalk Since this is the Pit: fuck you (and fuck the airlines). U.S. airlines made tens of billions of dollars in profit over the last decade. They didn’t put any of this money away for a rainy day, and they sure as hell didn’t spend it on their customers (which they have nickel-and-dimed to an increasingly greater extent with ever-higher bullshit fees\* and every decreasing amounts of legroom). Instead, U.S. airlines spent [96 percent of their cash profits over the last decade on stock buybacks to enrich investors and their own executives](https://slate.com/business/2020/03/airlines-bailout-coronavirus.html). It’s bad enough that the airlines have once again privatized their profits while trying to socialize their losses (in demanding a bailout from the U.S. government), but you think they should _also_ be able to hold onto their customers’ money for no service in return? :rolleyes: There’s no guarantee the airlines won’t start declaring bankruptcy, and the travel vouchers they are offering now may or may not be worth anything in the future. Even if that doesn’t happen, why should the airlines get to hold onto customers’ money for an indefinite period of time until it is safe to fly again? More cites: [U.S. airlines want a $50 billion bailout. They spent $45 billion buying back their stock.](https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/04/06/bailout-coronavirus-airlines/) [Airlines and Boeing want a bailout — but look how much they’ve spent on stock buybacks](https://www.marketwatch.com/story/airlines-and-boeing-want-a-bailout-but-look-how-much-theyve-spent-on-stock-buybacks-2020-03-18) [Do US Airlines Deserve A Government Bailout?](https://onemileatatime.com/us-airlines-government-bailout/) \*With the notable exception of Southwest Airlines, which doesn’t charge the majority of the bullshit fees the other airlines do. ---
**Author:** ![robby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robby/32/11048_2.png) [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2020, 6:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-rich-companies-doing-wrong-by-their-employees-customers-or-other-stakeholders-during-covid-19/850232/62 "2020-04-15T06:17:01Z")
> [@Damuri\_Ajashi](#): > > So why did American refund tickets? > > Tell you what, you send me $7,000 and you can have my united airline credits. For what it’s worth, United Airlines recently canceled one leg of my upcoming international flight (making the trip unworkable even if there wasn’t a public health crisis). Per the [DOT rules](https://www.transportation.gov/individuals/aviation-consumer-protection/flight-delays-cancellations), I was entitled to a full refund. However, United instead told me that they were “not offering refunds at this time.” The best I got out the representative was that if I didn’t use the travel credit within a year, I could then ask for a refund then. This was clearly against the rules, emphasized by an [enforcement notice](https://www.transportation.gov/airconsumer/enforcement_notice_refunds_apr_3_2020) issued by DOT, so I called back the next day. It took two more phone calls, but I finally got a full refund a few days ago. More info here: [DOT to airlines: Refunds are not optional for canceled flights](https://thepointsguy.com/news/dot-to-airlines-refunds-are-not-optional-for-canceled-flights/) ---
**Author:** ![Folacin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folacin/32/3195_2.png) [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2020, 11:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-rich-companies-doing-wrong-by-their-employees-customers-or-other-stakeholders-during-covid-19/850232/63 "2020-04-15T11:51:06Z")
> [@robby](#): > > This was clearly against the rules, emphasized by an [enforcement notice](https://www.transportation.gov/airconsumer/enforcement_notice_refunds_apr_3_2020) issued by DOT, so I called back the next day. It took two more phone calls, but I finally got a full refund a few days ago. Standard corporate crap - you need to know the rule they are breaking and harass them to get them to do the right thing. And I assume that somewhere in the contract for the tickets people have signed away their class-action rights. ---
**Author:** ![Ann\_Hedonia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ann_hedonia/32/319_2.png) [@Ann\_Hedonia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Hedonia)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2020, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-rich-companies-doing-wrong-by-their-employees-customers-or-other-stakeholders-during-covid-19/850232/64 "2020-04-15T18:08:09Z")
In terms of companies that are doing something right— **Showtime** , including their On Demand titles is free in April, on my cable system ( Spectrum). I’m not sure if this is a gift from Spectrum or Showtime, though. But it’s been nice to have while I’m grounded. And HBO GO is offering a wide selection of free titles. The developer of Candy Crush offered unlimited lives on their games for the first week in April - that’s expired now - but it was still a thoughtful gesture,. ---
**Author:** ![Damuri\_Ajashi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/898d66/32.png) [@Damuri\_Ajashi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Damuri_Ajashi)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2020, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-rich-companies-doing-wrong-by-their-employees-customers-or-other-stakeholders-during-covid-19/850232/65 "2020-04-15T22:25:01Z")
> [@robby](#): > > For what it’s worth, United Airlines recently canceled one leg of my upcoming international flight (making the trip unworkable even if there wasn’t a public health crisis). > > Per the [DOT rules](https://www.transportation.gov/individuals/aviation-consumer-protection/flight-delays-cancellations), I was entitled to a full refund. However, United instead told me that they were “not offering refunds at this time.” The best I got out the representative was that if I didn’t use the travel credit within a year, I could then ask for a refund then. > > This was clearly against the rules, emphasized by an [enforcement notice](https://www.transportation.gov/airconsumer/enforcement_notice_refunds_apr_3_2020) issued by DOT, so I called back the next day. It took two more phone calls, but I finally got a full refund a few days ago. > > More info here: > [DOT to airlines: Refunds are not optional for canceled flights](https://thepointsguy.com/news/dot-to-airlines-refunds-are-not-optional-for-canceled-flights/) I got my money from United. I called them and referred to the regulation and they gave me back my money minus some airport fee of $30. I don’t think I’m going to forget their behavior going forward, they will have to represent a noticable discount to American to get my business. ---
**Author:** ![robby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robby/32/11048_2.png) [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2020, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-rich-companies-doing-wrong-by-their-employees-customers-or-other-stakeholders-during-covid-19/850232/66 "2020-04-16T15:06:49Z")
> [@Damuri\_Ajashi](#): > > I got my money from United. I called them and referred to the regulation and they gave me back my money minus some airport fee of $30. I don’t think I’m going to forget their behavior going forward, they will have to represent a noticable discount to American to get my business. Glad to hear that, though I would try to get your airport fee back, too. If any segment of your flight is canceled or significantly modified by the airline, they are supposed to refund everything, including seating fees, bag fees, etc. In any event, good job on being persistent with calling them. It’s always best to exhaust all attempts in dealing directly with a large business, starting with phone calls to representatives and supervisors, and escalating to emails and letters to people higher in the company, before resorting to more extreme measures like credit card disputes and lawsuits. This is especially true in a fast-moving environment like the current situation. For example, United Airlines has [modified their refund policy at least four times in the last few weeks](https://onemileatatime.com/united-airlines-refund-one-year/). A police officer in Chicago instead [filed a federal lawsuit last week](https://abcnews.go.com/Business/police-officer-sues-united-airlines-ticket-refunds/story?id=70018998). IMHO, this seems to be both jumping the gun and short-sighted (since if he wins, his lawyer will get a portion of the settlement), unless he’s hoping for punitive damages. ---
**Author:** ![russian\_heel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f05b48/32.png) [@russian\_heel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/russian_heel)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2020, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-rich-companies-doing-wrong-by-their-employees-customers-or-other-stakeholders-during-covid-19/850232/67 "2020-04-17T02:06:04Z")
Pretty awful article about Carnival Cruises who behaved badly at the beginning of the pandemic and a couple of their execs being flippant about it: [https://www.bloomberg.com/features/2020-carnival-cruise-coronavirus/](https://www.bloomberg.com/features/2020-carnival-cruise-coronavirus/) Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2020, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-rich-companies-doing-wrong-by-their-employees-customers-or-other-stakeholders-during-covid-19/850232/68 "2020-04-17T02:46:59Z")
> [@russian\_heel](#): > > Pretty awful article about Carnival Cruises who behaved badly at the beginning of the pandemic and a couple of their execs being flippant about it: What pieces of shit those people are. > [@](#): > > Carnival executives also make the highly questionable assertion that cruise ships don’t spread disease more easily than it would spread elsewhere. “Nothing to do with cruise ships,” Donald says. Covid-19 spreads the same in “an airport terminal, a subway station, a restaurant, a theater, a stadium.” When was the last time there was a norovirus outbreak in a subway station or theater? ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2020, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-rich-companies-doing-wrong-by-their-employees-customers-or-other-stakeholders-during-covid-19/850232/69 "2020-04-17T03:17:21Z")
> [@Ike\_Witt](#): > > What pieces of shit those people are. When was the last time there was a norovirus outbreak in a subway station or theater? Seriously? Probably a million people caught a virus from somebody they sat next to at the movies or on a subway train. They’re just not immediately identifiable. ---
**Author:** ![russian\_heel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f05b48/32.png) [@russian\_heel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/russian_heel)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2020, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-rich-companies-doing-wrong-by-their-employees-customers-or-other-stakeholders-during-covid-19/850232/70 "2020-04-22T01:54:20Z")
Major League Baseball, under some delusion that they will be actually playing baseball games in front of fans anytime soon…gets sued by fans for ticket refunds: > **[MLB fans file lawsuit over ticket refunds during coronavirus shutdown](https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/mlb-fans-file-lawsuit-over-ticket-refunds-during-coronavirus-shutdown/)** > > Two fans are suing MLB, every team and ticket resellers And big business just can’t help to wet their beaks into federal funds meant for small business. The list of Shame is here: > **[Here are the largest public companies taking payroll loans meant for small...](https://www.cnbc.com/2020/04/21/large-public-companies-are-taking-small-businesses-payroll-loans.html)** > > Those that have received Paycheck Protection Program relief designed for small business include publicly traded firms with thousands of employees. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![russian\_heel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f05b48/32.png) [@russian\_heel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/russian_heel)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2020, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-rich-companies-doing-wrong-by-their-employees-customers-or-other-stakeholders-during-covid-19/850232/71 "2020-04-23T19:55:59Z")
Airline executive tries to bully countries that order planes to leave the middle seat empty: > **[CEO of Ryanair says his planes won't fly if middle seats must be kept empty...](https://www.cbsnews.com/news/ryanair-michael-oleary-social-distancing-middle-seats-idiotic/)** > > "Either the government pays for the middle seat or we won't fly," Michael O'Leary told the Financial Times. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2020, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-rich-companies-doing-wrong-by-their-employees-customers-or-other-stakeholders-during-covid-19/850232/72 "2020-04-23T20:08:34Z")
> [@russian\_heel](#): > > Airline executive tries to bully countries that order planes to leave the middle seat empty: > > [Ryanair CEO says his planes won't fly with empty middle seats for "idiotic" social-distancing rules - CBS News](https://www.cbsnews.com/news/ryanair-ceo-michael-oleary-coronavirus-airlines-middle-seats-empty-planes-wont-fly/) Read the whole article and he has a point: > [@](#): > > Even if you do that, the middle seat doesn’t deliver any social distancing, so it’s kind of an idiotic idea that doesn’t achieve anything anyway." Leaving the middle seat empty is not social distancing, sorry Government Official, dumb idea. As to the CEO, if you can’t make money with 33% empty seats, you could raise the cost of the remaining seats by 50% and it would work out, wouldn’t it. So no geniuses in this one at all. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2020, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-rich-companies-doing-wrong-by-their-employees-customers-or-other-stakeholders-during-covid-19/850232/73 "2020-04-24T14:04:37Z")
Counterpoint: Harbor Freight [donated 1,500 pallets of PPE](https://www.harborfreight.com/hospital-donation-update.html) (their entire stock) to hospitals in its service areas. ---
**Author:** ![russian\_heel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f05b48/32.png) [@russian\_heel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/russian_heel)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2020, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-rich-companies-doing-wrong-by-their-employees-customers-or-other-stakeholders-during-covid-19/850232/74 "2020-04-24T22:52:32Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > Read the whole article and he has a point: > > Leaving the middle seat empty is not social distancing, sorry Government Official, dumb idea. > > As to the CEO, if you can’t make money with 33% empty seats, you could raise the cost of the remaining seats by 50% and it would work out, wouldn’t it. So no geniuses in this one at all. Be that as it may, saying you’ll refuse to do business with a country because of their social distancing measures, effective or not, is always bad optics. You would look better saying we disagree and are working with the country to see if we can come up with a compromise, and here is our idea: ---
**Author:** ![russian\_heel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f05b48/32.png) [@russian\_heel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/russian_heel)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2020, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-rich-companies-doing-wrong-by-their-employees-customers-or-other-stakeholders-during-covid-19/850232/75 "2020-04-24T23:57:08Z")
Whole Foods used to have a “liberal” image. Guess that ended when Amazon bought them and they join their giant owner in union busting when worker’s rights are needed more in decades: > **[Whole Foods Secretly Upgrades Tech to Target and Squash Unionizing Efforts](https://observer.com/2020/04/amazon-whole-foods-anti-union-technology-heat-map/)** > > Data collected by Whole Foods suggests that stores with low racial and ethnic diversity are more likely to unionize. ---
**Author:** ![2Bits](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/2/e95f7d/32.png) [@2Bits](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/2Bits)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2020, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-rich-companies-doing-wrong-by-their-employees-customers-or-other-stakeholders-during-covid-19/850232/76 "2020-04-25T00:45:13Z")
> [@russian\_heel](#): > > Whole Foods used to have a “liberal” image. Guess that ended when Amazon bought them and they join their giant owner in union busting when worker’s rights are needed more in decades: > > [https://observer.com/2020/04/amazon-whole-foods-anti-union-technology-heat-map/](https://observer.com/2020/04/amazon-whole-foods-anti-union-technology-heat-map/) It was just an image. The previous owner was a stock-manipulating a-hole. [Whole Foods Faces SEC Probe](https://www.forbes.com/2007/07/16/whole-foods-sec-markets-equity-cx_jl_0716markets30.html#1779ad5710f8) Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro ---
**Author:** ![russian\_heel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f05b48/32.png) [@russian\_heel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/russian_heel)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2020, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-rich-companies-doing-wrong-by-their-employees-customers-or-other-stakeholders-during-covid-19/850232/77 "2020-04-27T00:28:21Z")
Disney, you know Magic Kingdom, Mickey Mouse, Wish upon a Star, all that warm and fuzzy stuff? Yet another company cashing in for its fat cat stockholders, while fucking 100,000 employees: > **[Disney Rewarding Shareholders at the Expense of Workers Shows Why ‘System’ Is...](https://www.ccn.com/disney-rewarding-shareholders-at-expense-of-workers-shows-why-system-rigged/)** > > Disney is putting the interest of shareholders ahead of staff. As hundreds of thousands are furloughed, shareholders still receive dividends. ---
**Author:** ![russian\_heel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f05b48/32.png) [@russian\_heel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/russian_heel)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-rich-companies-doing-wrong-by-their-employees-customers-or-other-stakeholders-during-covid-19/850232/78 "2020-04-28T01:41:00Z")
The Los Angeles Lakers, a NBA franchise valued at $4 billion returns a $4.6 million loan from the Paycheck Protection Program, part of the recent COVID-19 stimulus package: > **[Lakers return $4.6 million coronavirus relief loan | CNN Business](https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/27/business/los-angeles-lakers-return-ppp-loan-trnd/index.html)** > > The Los Angeles Lakers has repaid a $4.6 million coronavirus relief loan the professional basketball organization received as part of the federal government's Paycheck Protection Program. . . .after “learning” that the program was out of funds. No you didn’t. You grabbed the cash and only returned it after you got caught by the media. In other words, you would have kept the loan if you could get away with it. ---
**Author:** ![Folacin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folacin/32/3195_2.png) [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2020, 11:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-rich-companies-doing-wrong-by-their-employees-customers-or-other-stakeholders-during-covid-19/850232/79 "2020-04-28T11:20:30Z")
Millionaire grabs cash, gives himself a bonus: [[Album] Ready the guillotine ![](https://i.imgur.com/Ei8bkje.jpeg?fb "Ready the guillotine") ](https://imgur.com/gallery/NzmjItU) Too lazy to find the original tweets. Legal? Sure. Right? Nope. But that appears to be the right-wing way. ---
**Author:** ![russian\_heel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f05b48/32.png) [@russian\_heel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/russian_heel)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2020, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-rich-companies-doing-wrong-by-their-employees-customers-or-other-stakeholders-during-covid-19/850232/80 "2020-05-09T23:05:04Z")
Grubhub, despite a 12% YTD increase in earnings Q1 2020, has been getting its grubby hands into the pockets of struggling restaurant owners: > **[Grubhub CEO responds to backlash over fees amid pandemic](https://thehill.com/homenews/news/496930-grubhub-ceo-responds-to-backlash-over-fees-amid-pandemic/)** > > Grubhub’s CEO is facing outrage over the company’s businesses practices during the coronavirus pandemic. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-rich-companies-doing-wrong-by-their-employees-customers-or-other-stakeholders-during-covid-19/850232.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-rich-companies-doing-wrong-by-their-employees-customers-or-other-stakeholders-during-covid-19/850232.md?page=5)