PR Resource

United Airlines is embarrassed for what it almost did to employee bonuses. It had proposed to take away individual rewards and to conduct a lottery in which one employee would win $100,000 each quarter and other employees would win vacations, cars and/or cash prizes. Needless to say, the proposal didn’t go down well with its workers. They revolted and the airline put the program on hold. The message was clear. Don’t take away my bonus. An external observer might say the unhappiness was to be expected. Individuals depended on the bonus and to see it turn into a game of chance was maddening. It meant that most employees’ hard work would go unrewarded. United blundered internal relations on this one. It was smart to pull back as quickly as it did.

The end game for many Uber drivers is poverty. They don’t earn enough from driving to make a living. Uber is not alone in this. Its competitor, Lyft, has the same challenge. This presents a PR problem for both companies. If drivers become convinced that ferrying passengers is a mug’s game, they will no longer do it. Then where will the two services be? Statistics show an extremely high turnover in drivers per year. On the other hand, if fewer drivers work for both services, their average income will rise and they might make a living. This would lend credence to limiting the number of drivers in a region to make sure they can survive. So far, neither service has appeared to do that. High tech is not always better.

Some crises never seem to go away. They just get worse. Such is the case of Equifax, which bungled a mammoth hack last year in which 145.5 million customers had their data stolen. It has now confirmed that an additional 24 million consumers had their names and partial identifications taken. As outrageous as this is, the knowledge that Equifax was entirely responsible for the successful hack is even worse. The company failed to update a server and left a gaping hole in its security that thieves exploited. It will be a long time before consumers trust the company again and that is as it should be. Equifax was lax about protecting data, the one thing it needed to have. It destroyed its reputation in the incident and it can’t seem to recover. One almost wishes the company would go away and let other credit reporting agencies take its place.

The mayor of Oakland, CA warned undocumented immigrants that the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE) was about to make arrests in the town. She did it because Oakland is a self-proclaimed sanctuary city. ICE was furious with her and said 850 targets had slipped away. The mayor put her reputation on the line and that of Oakland  as well.  It was a courageous act and good PR — what one does and not what one says.  Maybe the next time ICE will leave Oakland alone. That is surely the hope of the mayor and immigrants there. ICE is running roughshod over the lives of the undocumented and creating havoc where there doesn’t need to be any. It is good that it has had its comeuppance and perhaps the mayor’s act will be emulated elsewhere in the US.

California is taking a technological leap of faith. It is now allowing self-driving cars to go on the roads without an attendant behind the wheel. This could be a PR/Marketing triumph or a disaster. It depends whether the autonomous autos negotiate the roads without accidents or other run-ins.  The engineering companies, such as Waymo, have been working toward this day for years. They are eager to start sending vehicles on the road by themselves. One unknown in all this is the sentiment of the passengers. Will they be tempted to seize the wheel if they get nervous? Can they sit quietly in the passenger seat and let the car proceed as it wishes? The issue is not so much the automated vehicle but drivers around it who weave in and out and cut off others then panic stop. Humans are the problem, not machines.

Telephone equipment suppliers are on the verge of a massive roll-out of 5G cellular systems, which will deliver data faster than ever to phones.  One CEO is estimating 5 billion 5G subscriptions worldwide by 2023. It is not too early for marketers and PR practitioners to begin to strategize how to use the increased speed to advantage. It might take some creative thinking but those who arrive first with the most effective ways to use content will be the winners. One thought is that it will be useful for individual targeting. A person passing by a retailer’s store will receive an instant message to drop in for special savings. This can be done now but it will be faster with 5G. It will take time to create services that can take advantage of faster speeds. There is no profit in waiting.

The US Citizen and Immigration Service has changed its mission statement. It has eliminated reference to immigrants being customers and it now stresses protection of America. Words matter. It is clear that the agency has pushed the immigrant to the background while focusing on security. There wasn’t anything wrong with the old mission statement other than it was too long, as the present one is as well. Making immigrants secondary to security and preservation of American values implies that migrants infect rather than build our society. Nothing could be further from the truth. One hopes that once Trump is out of office and nativist leanings are reined in that the Service can return to its original spirit and recognize once again a nation of immigrants.

There is an old saying, “The best defense is a good offense.”  The National Rifle Association apparently believes it and is striking back hard at gun control advocates. Wayne LaPierre, the face of the NRA, delivered a forceful speech in defense of the Second Amendment and the right to own guns. He trotted out the old trope, “The best way to stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun.” He called for hardening schools by arming guards and teachers. He gave not an inch. There is a feeling, however, that this time might be different. Even the President is calling for outlawing Bump Stocks, which turn a semi-automatic into a machine gun. At least four governors have agreed to work together to increase control over flows of weapons to their states. If the Federal Government will do nothing, states might have to move for themselves. Expert opinion believes it will be a long, slow slog to gain a more effective grip on stopping arms reaching mass murderers, and the NRA  isn’t about to help.

A politician must feel comfortable about his re-election to speak before a hostile audience. Senator Marco Rubio of Florida endured a town hall during which he was booed and lectured by angry participants. It was a PR disaster for him, especially since he upheld his support for the National Rifle Association and would not agree to a ban on assault weapons. Time will tell if it erodes his support in Florida. One wonders why a pol would willingly go into the pit at a time of heightened emotions and furious anger. If he thought he would gain from doing so, his judgment is suspect. If he was there out of concern for the public, then sticking to his positions showed he wasn’t listening. Either way, he lost the audience and probably many observers as well. The Democrats need a credible candidate in Florida for Senator, and Rubio could see his political career at an end.

Kentucky Fried Chicken has run out of chicken in the UK. It has had to close 2/3 of its 900 restaurants in the country because of the shortage.  The chain is making light of it but the situation is serious. There is no faster way to lose customers for the long-term. Once they get out of the habit of going to a KFC because it isn’t open, they won’t come back easily. The real question for the company is how the logistics failure occurred.  It is more than a simple mistake. Somehow their suppliers weren’t communicating to the company.  KFC will fix the gaffe but the ongoing problem is what needs to be addressed. It shouldn’t happen again for any reason.