Philippines Airlines Case Essay

Philippines airlines started its history on March 15, 1941 on a small twin-engine Beech Model 18 flying 212 of pure skies from Manila to Baguio with a full load of five passengers. Upon the outbreak of the pacific war, PAL’s two aircraft were pressed into service with the US army Air Corps. Post-war operations began on February 14, 1946 with five ex-military Douglas DC-35. In July, the airline chartered DC-4s to carry American service men home to Oakland, making PAL the first airline to cross the Pacific. Regular DC-4s service to San Francisco began in December 1946. In May 1947, PAL opened a route to Europe. By 1952, the international route network covered two-thirds of the wold, and the government became the majority stockholder. At present, PAL uses the most advance technology in the local airline industry. Technical centers were constructed to perform ground handling for other airlines and contract work for the states and Philippine Military services. Computerized reservations systems link most PAL sales outlets: 103 in the Philippines and 56 worldwide. The PAL Data Center at the Manila Domestic Airport is the core of the most extensive computer system in the Philippines today. A massive refleeting program was introduced to be able to cope with the standards of the industry. Indeed, this program paved the way for the problems they are facing right now. Closure Philippine Airlines (PAL) is facing its worst crisis. Foremost in the company’s mind is how can it possibly overcome problems created by the economic turmoil that has been bagging the Asian region since July 1997- a situation few quarters were able to predict. What do they do in times of decreasing demand for air travel, poor revenues, increasing operational cost, and when credit to cover financial obligations is almost non-existent? The main reason why PAL suffered financial problems was because of the massive refleeting modernization program, which was funded through loans made from local and international creditors. It has reached a point where it can no longer keep up with its obligations. Then, the labor unrest come into force because of the need to downsize manpower as a solution to its financial problems. The pilots rejected a scheme to retire 200 colleagues using a provision in their CBA which would not give them enough monetary benefit that will compensate their year of service with the company. The  ground employees protested the manner by which the management implemented a retrenchment program on their ranks as a result of the 22-day pilots strike. The downsizing was a bitter pill to swallow. Chain of Events Prior to the Closure June 1998 The 620 PAL pilots went on strike paralyzing PAL’s operations. 1,800 ground employees were retrenched. July 1998 Philippine Air Lines Employee Association (PALEA) went on strike to demand the reinstatement of the retrenched members who they claimed were dismissed by violating their CBA provisions. September 1998 Lucio Tan gave out a proposal to PALEA officers, the acceptance of which will ensure the survical of PAL. PALEA officers accepted the proposal. Members of PALEA rejected the proposal and demanded a retraction from the officers. Officers retracted on a condition that a referendum is held on the proposals. Referendum under the sponsorship of DOLE was held. â€Å"NO† votes prevailed. Closure becomes reality. Management side (Interview) The closure was done because the company is on the brink of bankruptcy. It was due to the unforeseen economic crisis. There is no problem with the management and labor. The management then gave a proposal to avoid the closure of the company. Labor side (source from Newspapers) They are afraid that the management can easily fire them without the CBA. They are also worried about the recognition of the labor union even if the CBA is suspended. Another referendum was made and the â€Å"YES† votes prevailed which means that they agreed to the proposal of Mr. Lucio Tan maybe because of limited options they have. REACTION (Written by a PAL employee) The upheavals in PAL can best described as â€Å"Bad Luck†. After 57 years in existence, who would have say that management expertise is lacking, maybe inappropriate to the call of the times but never lacking. The labor unions have enjoyed the rights since day one of their foundation but again due to the call of the times, they have just ask for more. Each one has its own reasons for being so the collapse of the enterprise come to fore and closure was inevitable. The Yes or No vote. Both are evil but we chose the lesser evil- Why Yes? 1. Yes means reopening of the airline, a must for national interest as well as individual worker’s interest. The industry is vital to national trade and tourism. Its absence could slow down the Philippine economy further. While it’s true that there maybe other airlines, PAL has the edge in facilities, human resources, and worldwide recognition. 2. The suspension of CBA can still be questioned in court for its legality and can be pursued by the union. 3. There are labor laws to protect the workers. Effects of the Closure in the Economy The economy then was in recession so the people did not consider air travel. Many PAL workers went home jobless. GNP drops because of low productivity. Business opportunities were cancelled or delayed due to lack of Air Transportation. Re-opening Pal opened its door when all the problems were partially solved. Owner Lucio Tan infused capital to the wingless airline, which was not enough for its continued survival. Selling of some assets were considered to pay creditors. It lessened flight destinations to be able to lower operation cost. A possible management turnover might happen for the survival. Rehabilitation Plan The plan was mainly to infuse capital to PAL airlines. Possible investors were invited for the infusion of the capital. Selling percentage of ownership were also considered. Foreign investors such as Cathay Pacific, Northwest were thinking of possible investment to the said airline. A $150 million capital infusion was planned but the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) did not approve it last December 1998. Selling of shares  worth $11.916 million in abacus international, one of the biggest international computer reservation systems in the world was considered to raise cash for operations. A new rehabilitation plan worth $200 million is set to be submitted on March 15, 1999 for the approval by the SEC.

Poverty: Comparative Analysis of China and India

University of National and world economy economic sociology paper [pic] Poverty: Comparative Analysis of China and India WRITTEN BY mANOL MANOLOV ECONOMICS IN ENGLISH 131 FACULTY No: 29114055 TABLE OF CONTENTS: 1. Introduction to ‘poverty’ in the world †¢ Causes of poverty †¢ Effects of poverty †¢ Global analysis of world poverty †¢ Analysis of East-Asian region 2. Analysis of poverty in India †¢ Overview †¢ Historical trend †¢ Urban poverty †¢ Rural poverty †¢ Indian economic development 3. Analysis of poverty in China †¢ Overview †¢ Historical background Analysis of characteristics of China’s poverty †¢ Recent economic growth in China †¢ Connection between the Economic growth and Poverty reduction 4. International cooperation for reducing poverty 1. Introduction to ‘poverty’ in the world According to the World Bank (2000), â€Å"poverty is pronounced deprivation in well-being†. This of course begs the question of what is meant by well-being. One approach is to think of one’s well-being as the command over commodities in general, so people are better off if they have a greater command over resources.In this view, the main focus is on whether households or individuals have enough resources to meet their needs. Typically poverty is then measured by comparing an individual’s income or consumption with some defined threshold below which they are considered to be poor. This is the most conventional view – poverty is seen largely in monetary terms. This also is the starting point for most analyses of poverty. A second approach to well-being (and hence poverty) is to ask whether people are able to obtain a specific type of consumption good: do they have enough food? Or shelter? Or health care? Or education?In this view the analyst would need to go beyond the more traditional monetary measures of poverty and analyze an individual’s depri vation of education, nutrition, clothing, shelter etc. Perhaps the broadest approach to well-being (and poverty) is the one articulated by Amartya Sen (1987), who argues that well-being comes from a â€Å"capability’’ to function in society. Thus poverty arises when people lack key capabilities, and so have inadequate income or education, or poor health, or insecurity, or low self confidence, or a sense of powerlessness, or the absence of rights such as freedom of speech.Viewed in this way, poverty is a multi-dimensional phenomenon, and less amenable to simple solutions. Around the world, in rich or poor nations, poverty has always been present. In most nations today, inequality—the gap between the rich and the poor—is quite high and often widening. The causes are numerous, including a lack of individual responsibility, bad government policy, exploitation by people and businesses with power and influence, or some combination of these and other factors.Ma ny feel that high levels of inequality will affect social cohesion and lead to problems such as increasing crime and violence. †¢ Causes of poverty Poverty is caused by two basic things: scarcity of basic needs and barriers to opportunities. In the past poverty had been mostly accepted as inevitable as economies produced little while populations grew almost as fast making wealth scarce. Food shortages  were common before the appearance of modern agricultural technology. However, nowadays there are well enough places that still lack such technology, leading to poverty rates being retained or even raised.On the other hand, intensive farming often leads to a vicious cycle of exhaustion of soil fertility and decline of agricultural yields. Approximately 40% of the world's agricultural land is seriously degraded. Health care can be widely unavailable too. The loss of health care workers emigrating from impoverished countries has a damaging effect. For example, an estimated 100,000 Philippine nurses emigrated between 1994 and 2006. There are more Ethiopian doctors in Chicago than there are in Ethiopia.There are also a lot of factors of living, closely connected with poverty. Colonial history, centralization of power, corruption, warfare, environmental degradation and social inequality are factors on which the development of a nation or state is fully dependent. Moreover, warfare, unproductive agricultural cycles, drought and flooding and all kinds of natural disasters are factors which directly lead to poverty of any kind. Such factors are known as acute causes of poverty. †¢ Effects of poverty Poor health and education severely affects productivity.Inadequate nutrition in childhood undermines the ability of individuals to develop their full capabilities. The lack of economic freedom inhibits entrepreneurship among the poor. New enterprises and foreign investment can be driven away by the results of inefficient institutions, notably corruption, weak rule of law and excessive bureaucratic burdens. In reality, behind the increasing interconnectedness promised by globalization are global decisions, policies, and practices. These are typically influenced, driven, or formulated by the rich and powerful.These can be leaders of rich countries or other global actors such as multinational corporations, institutions, and influential people. In the face of such enormous external influence, the governments of poor nations and their people are often powerless. As a result, in the global context, a few get wealthy while the majority struggle. †¢ global analysis on world poverty The world has the wealth and means to end poverty. Almost half the world — over three billion people — live on less than $2. 50 a day And over 11 million children will die from poverty-related illness this year alone.This is the reality – the difference between the â€Å"developing† and â€Å"developed† countries is huge. [pic] In 2 005, the wealthiest 20% of the world accounted for 76. 6% of total private consumption. The poorest fifth just 1. 5%: [pic] Relatively to the graph above, the poorest 40 percent of the world’s population accounts for 5 percent of global income. The richest 20 percent account for three-quarters of world income. Nearly a billion people entered the 21st century unable to read a book or sign their names.Less than one per cent of what the world spent every year on weapons was needed to put every child into school by the year 2000 and yet it didn’t happen. Of 2. 2 billion children in the world 1 billion are in poverty (every second child). For the 2 billion children in the developing world there are 640 million without adequate shelter (1 in 3), 400 million with no access to safe water (1 in 5) and 270 million with no access to health service (1 in 7). A lot more facts can be displayed in order to portray the tremendous ratio of poverty and well-being in the world today. â⠂¬ ¢ Analysis of East-Asian regionThe role of social policy and particularly social security in addressing the ongoing challenge of poverty in East Asia is huge despite the region’s spectacular experience of economic growth in decent decades. The East Asian miracle resulted over the last four decades in a transformation of the region’s traditional agrarian economies and significant increases in standards of living for many ordinary people. Even though it was given little attention, poverty has remained an ongoing problem. The problem became particularly evident however with the Asian financial crisis of 1997 when many low income and middle class workers became unemployed.As a result of this crisis, the need for effective social policies and social security programs were recognized. The idea that economic growth would solve the problem of poverty was increasingly challenged. Even in China today, where rapid growth has created new employment opportunities and the promise of prosperity for many, the government has recognized that the problem of poverty cannot be addressed only through economic growth but that comprehensive social policies must be formulated, and this includes the development of an effective security system.It is claimed that the East Asian nations had not only solved the problem of poverty but were likely to maintain high standards of living for their citizens for many years to come. There were many references to what was called the â€Å"Asian Century† at the 2008 World Economic Forum at Davos which implied that the East Asian nations had not only achieved economic success but were likely to dominate global trade and finance in the future.This notion perpetuates the idea that economic growth is the solution to the poverty problem. However, the seriousness of the problem of poverty is seldom missed by journalists and the main stress is put on the vast economic development. While the incidence of absolute poverty associated wi th subsistence agriculture and urban, informal economic activities has declined dramatically, this does not mean that poverty and relative deprivation have been eradicated.Indeed, it became painfully clear in the late 1990s that the East Asian economies were vulnerable to global economic shocks and ill prepared to address the challenge of rising unemployment, homelessness and other social ills. Analysis of the World Bank show, that in recent years poverty in the region has decreased from 2% in Korea up to more than 10% in Malaysia. Poverty declines in China and India have been particularly sizable. The table below shows the proportion of population below the poverty line of 1$ per day: Country |1990 |Latest Year | |People’s Republic of China |33% |10. 8% (2004) | |Mongolia |27. 3% |11% (2002) | |Indonesia |20. 6% |4% (2005) | |Malaysia |

Hazardous waste management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Hazardous waste management - Essay Example In 2002 a site in Yucca monutain range in the state of Nevada wasproposed as the central repository site for the disposal/burial of the nuclear waste produced throughout the country. This site was proposed as the best site for the purpose due to its geographical location as this muntain range is located far away from the cities. However some environmentalists still raised issues against the depositing of nuclear waste in this area and then in the year 2010 this bill was terminated by the Obama administration. The reasons proposed by the administration were that of environmental issues but they are considered to be more of beurocratic reasons as the proposal was highly rejected by the Nevada state and the senator from nevada. The termination of this site as a repository left the state with no other options for the disposal of nuclear waste and the government was forced to dispose off the nuclear waste on or near the site of nuclear plants, some of which are located close to cities and propose a high risk of radioactivity as well as any accident in those plants could cause heavy damage to the people living near those areas. Brumfiel, G. (n.d.). Nuclear waste storage: Why did Yucca Mountain fail, and what next? - Slate Magazine.  Politics, Business, Technology, and the Arts - Slate Magazine. Retrieved March 5, 2013, from

TOPIC OF CHOICE, preferably pedophiles and paraphilias Essay

TOPIC OF CHOICE, preferably pedophiles and paraphilias - Essay Example All other physical contacts, in order to quench the thirst of carnal desires i.e. other than heterosexual relations, are considered as taboo, perversion and sexual deviation in large number of societies, cultures, states and countries. A person would be considered to be acting in a deviant way in society if they are violating what the significant social norm in that particular culture is. (Retrieved from freeessays.cc) The nature-nurture debate is one of the most enduring one with reference to the discipline of psychology, and in respect of discovering the development of personality. Social theorists stand pole apart in their observations in respect of the effect of the environment on the one hand and innate characteristics on the other in making up of a personality. Psychologists have defined various kinds and forms of sexual disorders, which cause perversion and deviation from the normal sex behavior of individuals. There are so many reasons of these disorders. Some of the theorists declare environment as the major reason behind such disorders, while few of them are of the opinion that biological and physical reasons are also involved in sexual perversion and deviant behavior. Man enters the world as a neat and clean biological organism, which learns how to behave from society by entering into continuous and constant interaction with the other members of his social arrangement. It is therefore, theorists view man’s behavior as the learnt one, which is highly supportive in his personality development and recognition of his role, position and responsibilities while interacting with his social surroundings. Hence, it is the socio-cultural background that maintains lion’s share in the growth of man’s personality and social behavior. Theorists are of the view that prevailing social norms, mores, values and activities prevailing in a community determine man’s superior and inferior habits and

It's all provided in the instructions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

It's all provided in the instructions - Essay Example Therefore, by 1815 the revolution was not a success, but an ongoing struggle. Rousseau advocated for pure democracy as was practiced in Greek in the ancient period. The idea of democracy enlightened the French people after the effect of American struggle for independence. In 1792 groups of bourgeoisie called the Jacobins agitated for an establishment of a republic and thus abolish a monarchy. They did this by campaigning against the constitutionalists, monarchists and moderates. In this year, 1792, France threatened Austria with war and regarded all government as an enemy of the monarchy because it was threatened and feared the support of the bourgeoisie by external government to instigate another revolt. However, in early 1793, the monarch was overthrow and executed by the French Republic was established (Beeler et al., 2011) In February 1793, the French Republic was engaging in war with most of the countries in Europe. The Edict of Fraternity advocated for all the people of Europe to be in opposition to their leaders of all sphere including spiritual and secular rulers. The French Republic promised to support such liberation because they believed to have found a solution to political, economic and social problems. They believed in practicing equality, liberty and fraternity (Beeler et al., 2011). Therefore, the new Republican leadership foregone reforming France and benefit its people to spread the ideas of republicanism. They also feared on how to conduct domestic reform, which was desperately, needed in the country. By 1799, Europe was in constant fighting one revolution war to another. It was regarded as the fight between the French and the rest of Europe because the ideas of social equality, democracy and nationalism had root in the French Republic. On November, Napoleon captured power and he declared himself the emperor. He was later crowned as the Emperor and ruled

Effect of reverberation and amplification on sound localisation Essay

Effect of reverberation and amplification on sound localisation - Essay Example Binaural cues are based on the processing of differences in intensity, time and frequency correlation between both ears in the central nervous system. Localisation can be affected by any number of factors, including age, hearing loss, gender, handedness, environmental conditions and sound variations. An important factor in sound localisation is reverberation, which affects auditory perception and can provide listeners with a cue for sound distance. Reverberation refers to the acoustic environment that surrounds a sound, and is defined as the combined effect of multiple sound reflections within a room. Hearing loss may affect listening in reverberation by distorting the speech spectrum, therefore it is interesting to further investigate the effect of reverberation on speech localisation. Sound localisation may also be affected by hearing aids, as these may affect the localisation cues. Sound localisation therefore can be both negatively and positively affected by hearing aids. Directi onal microphones may disrupt binaural cues for localisation, as they can artificially change the inter-aural level and phase differences, which are both critical cues for localisation. ... However, previous studies are contradictory as to whether bilateral or unilateral hearing aids are better when in terms of sound localisation. The main purpose of the present study is to investigate the contribution of adding reverberation on a listening environment to the abilities of normal hearing and hearing impaired listeners in localising speech and non-speech signals, and to evaluate whether it is necessary to add reverberant environments in clinical testing. Another objective of the study will be to determine if adding reverberation makes localisation more challenging for hearing impaired listeners in comparison to normal hearing listeners. The second main purpose of the present study is to understand the effect of the hearing loss and the hearing aid amplification systems on the utilization of the localisation cues in reverberant and anechoic environments. These two factors will be investigated separately by comparing the hearing impaired performances with and without hearin g aids in both listening environments. 1.2 Thesis Outline Chapter 1 Introduction Chapter 2 Background and Literature Review. This chapter introduces the concepts and literature on horizontal sound localisation in both normal and hearing impaired listeners. Background information on reverberation, and what is known on the effects of reverberation on our ability to localise sound sources in the horizontal plane, is also introduced. Chapter 3 Experimental Design. This chapter describes the experimental set-up and apparatus used in the localisation experiments in the thesis. It will further provide some details of the stimuli, reverberation, and the methods, used in simulating different reverberant environments. Chapter 4 KEMAR Measurements. This chapter reports the measurements

Minorities in the UK Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Minorities in the UK - Essay Example However, there are several factors which seem incomplete in the overall claim on the part of the locals. The first one is that the identity of C is known which does not violate the same point in the Act. In this vein, 187B of the 1990 Town and Country Planning Act Part 3 states: Rules of court may provide for such an injunction to be issued against a person whose identity is unknown.1 This is why the local authority made a huge mistake at imposing an illegal breach of planning toward the identified person in keeping strictly with the law. On the other hand, the fact that C bought that piece of land is more than just weighty. She must get through a host of different executive bodies to make it her private property. Thus, if the local authority disregards the fact of purchasing land, then it disregards and sincerely blames the work of officials responsible for selling land to C. All in all, it is a provoking point addressed to the overall executive branch of power. It also does harm to the democratic freedoms proclaimed and shared by the British government. As a result, it is a serious violation of the law. Regardless of the fact that C is of Roma decent, she is an owner. By and large, there is a universal norm on justifying the gist of private property and rights of individuals, namely: â€Å"Property rights† is an index of the degree to which the government enforces laws that protect private property.2 Thus, the eviction is not permissible. To say more, the case is all about some discriminatory nature nurtured highly on the part of the local authority. C wants to station her caravans in order to provide her children with suffice healthcare and education which is within easy reach. This is the next hallmark of the discussion. Once again, here is the fact of straight-forward discrimination toward Roma people in the UK. In this respect the High Court should take it into account since it would be a blame for EU and the UK, in particular. Equality in rights i s needed to keep the social equilibrium. However, it is a case for EU, as the British government lobbied on issues concerned with equal access to education, employment and housing for Roma people.3 This is why the case of C should be considered in terms of international commission on the human rights and the right for housing, in particular. What is more, the fact that C could buy the piece of the land in the London Green Belt makes it possible to suppose that she has a host of other rights. According to the ECSR and the Committee on Human Rights in Europe, the right to housing permits the exercise of many other rights – civil and political as well as economic, social and cultural rights.4 Hereby, C is eligible in taking her part while solving the issue of stationing her caravans near the local school and healthcare facilities. Roma people and other indigenous ethnical groups living in the UK are also protected by the OSCE conventions on their sustainable integration.5 Hence, it is another standpoint to think of by the High Court while considering the merits of the case. Along with the undeniable fact of purchasing and owning the land, C is allowed to share the rest of the amenities as declared by the Council of Europe’s Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities which the UK belongs to.6 Thus, the UK government cannot disregard a set of obligations based on the international