Sabtu, Oktober 29, 2011

Sengketa Pegawai, Qantas Berhenti Beroperasi


Sengketa Pegawai, Qantas Berhenti Beroperasi

Seluruh jadwal penerbangan domestik dan internasional tidak bisa dilayani Qantas hari ini.

SABTU, 29 OKTOBER 2011, 16:45 WIB
Syahid Latif
VIVAnews - Tak hanya maskapai penerbangan nasional, Garuda Indonesia, yang sempat terancam berhenti beroperasi akibat pemogokan pegawai, maskapai penerbangan Australia, Qantas Airways, juga mengalaminya. Manajemen memutuskan mengandangkan seluruh pesawatnya akibat sengketa yang terjadi dengan para pegawainya.

Dalam sebuah pengumuman yang mengejutkan, Qantas memutuskan untuk merumahkan seluruh pegawainya terhitung Senin malam akibat perselisihan. Keputusan itu tentu saja membuat para penumpang 'terdampar' di negara yang banyak dikunjungi pelancong itu.

Serikat pekerja, mulai dari pilot hingga pegawai katering, telah menggelar aksi demonstrasi sejak September lalu. Selain tuntutan pembayaran lebih, para pegawai juga meminta manajemen untuk memangkas biaya yang terus meningkat.

"Mereka merusak strategi dan brand perusahaan. Mereka secara sengaja telah membuat instabilitas perusahaan. Konsumen kini kabur dari kami," kata Chief Executive Qantas Alan Joyce dalam pernyataannya seperti dikutip Reuters, Sabtu, 29 Oktober 2011.

Joyce menilai, selain tuntutan gaji yang mustahil dipenuhi, aksi para serikat pekerja itu telah mendikte manajemen dalam menjalankan perusahaan.

Akibat penghentian seluruh penerbangan domestik dan internasional ini, Qantas memperkirakan kerugian yang ditelan perusahaan bisa mencapai 20 juta dolar Australia.

Kerugian aksi demonstrasi yang dilakukan para pegawai Qantas ini merupakan yang terburuk sejak tahun 2008. Kala itu aksi demonstrasi para teknisi menyebabkan kerugian Qantas mencapai 130 juta dolar Australia.

"Saya prihatin dengan apa yang terjadi dengan masa depan Qantas. pemerintah berupaya menyodorkan aplikasi Fair Work Australia (semacam pengadilan industrial) untuk menyelesaikan masalah industrial di Qantas," kata Menteri Transportasi Australia Anthony Albanese.

Penghentian operasional Qantas ini, dilakukan di tengah musim kedatangan wisatawan yang ditaksir mencapai 1.000 pengunjung. Para pelancong ini umumnya hendak menghadiri perlombaan balap kuda Melbourne Cup.

Diperkirakan sebanyak 70 ribu penumpang dan 600 jadwal penerbangan akan terpengaruh akibat keputusan penghentian operasional ini. Dilaporkan juga sejumlah penumpang sudah ada di dalam pesawat ketika pengumuman penghentian operasional Qantas ini diumumkan, Sabtu.

"Hal ini tidak pernah terjadi sebelumnya, dan ini betul-betul pembajakan terhadap negara," ujar Australian and International Pilots Association, Barry Jackson kepada Sky News. (umi)
• VIVAnews

Minggu, Oktober 16, 2011

Six Brands That Have Come Back From the Dead


Six Brands That Have Come Back From the Dead

by 24/7 Wall St. staff
Friday, October 14, 2011

Volkswagen, Lego (courtesy Volkswagen, Lego)
provided by
247_logo_first.JPG
by Douglas A. McIntyre, Michael B. Sauter, Charles B. Stockdale
More from 24/7 Wall St: 

• America's Disappearing Restaurant Chains

• The Retailers Hiring the Most Workers This Holiday Season

• The Colleges That Guarantee the Highest Salaries
It is not unusual for brands to disappear. It is unusual to see major brands resurrected. Scores of brands like New Coke, Circuit City, and Borders are likely to be gone forever. But a number of companies find that certain dying brands still have some attraction for consumers. This may be because at one time they were well-known, at least well enough to make them worthwhile targets for new investment. 24/7 Wall St. looked at the world of dying brands to find several that, with product changes and marketing dollars, have come back to their previous levels of sales and popularity.
Most of the brands on the 24/7 Wall St. "Brands That Have Come Back From the Dead" have long histories. Brands, including VW, Lego, and Nintendo are nearly a century or more old. Even Apple and Camaro have been consumer products for decades. All of them were also the market leaders, or at least brands with very large sales, in their sectors before their revenue declined.
24/7 Wall St. looked at consumer brands that were among the dominant products in their markets at some time in the past 50 years but have lost their place almost completely. They were revived by their parent companies or new owners, and are now profitable and healthy again. Some, like Apple and Marvel, are the leaders in their industries.
1. Lego
The LEGO Group has been around since 1932. For decades, the company was a leading toy manufacturer, but Lego's sales dropped 40% in the two years since 2002 — due in part to the growing popularity of electronic toys. In 2004, the company had debts of almost $1 billion and was near bankruptcy. Then, spurred by the recession and the low cost of its toys, sales of Lego products began to pick back up, and have been increasing since. The company cut its workforce by 1,000 and reduced the amount of pieces it produces from 13,000 to 6,000, discontinuing its unpopular toys. For the first half of 2011, net sales have been up 25% over the first half of 2010. Today, it is the world's fourth largest toy manufacturer.
2. Marvel
Marvel is one of the most recognizable brands in the comic book industry, owing its fortunes to popular characters like Spider-Man, X-Men and The Hulk. But Marvel's current success follows a serious slump. In late 1996, after declining sales of comics and trading cards, the company filed for bankruptcy. In 2000, the company released the movie X-Men — a huge success, which grossed almost $300 million worldwide. Two years later, Spider-Man was released, becoming the top grossing movie of the year. In 2009, Marvel Entertainment was purchased by Disney (DIS - News) for $4 billion. This summer the company released X-Men: First Class, which has already grossed over $353 million worldwide in theaters.
3. Old Spice
Old Spice, a classic American brand that has been around since 1938, attained huge popularity by the 1970s. By 1990, however, the brand had become tired, associated more with its aging customer base than anything else. In 2000, the company, now owned by Procter & Gamble (PG - News), came out with Old Spice Red Zone and revamped its advertising campaigns, focusing on the younger generation. Popular online ads featuring the Old Spice Man went viral, propelling Old Spice to the lead in the body wash market. In June 2010, sales increased a whopping 107%.
4. Apple
With its Macintosh line, Apple (AAPL - News) was a premiere personal computer manufacturer in the late 1980s. In 1985, Steve Jobs left his position after being marginalized by the board and new CEO, John Scully. The company did well through the end of the decade, but performed poorly in the mid 1990s. Jobs returned in 1997 and, after 18 months of losses, the company received a $150 million investment from Microsoft. In 1998, the company released the iMac, followed by the iPod in 2001. These products marked Apple's return and spurred its rise as a competitive consumer electronics company. Since then, its top position has been cemented by the wildly popular iPhone and iPad. Apple is now one of the world's most loved and followed brands.
5. Nintendo
In the late 1980s through the 1990s, Japanese game company Nintendo dominated the market with its Gameboy, Nintento Entertainment System, and Super Nintendo. In mid-90s, the company introduced the Nintendo 64 to combat the next generation of consoles that incorporated 3D graphics for the first time. While the N64 sold well, Sony had entered the market and its PlayStation sold more than double that of the N64. Nintendo would continue to struggle against its rivals. The Nintendo GameCube sold less than Microsoft's Xbox and was blown out of the water by the PlayStation 2. In 2006, Nintendo finally recovered when it released the Wii, blowing out both the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3. The biggest reason for the Wii's success was its new interactive design and ease of use. The Wii was successfully marketed to families with children, rather than just to video game players. To date the Wii has sold more than 86 million units.
6. Volkswagen
Volkswagen was relatively unknown in the U.S. during the 1960s, even though its products were first sold here in 1949. By 1970, the company controlled 7% of the market. It was also the first foreign automobile company to open an assembly plant in the country since the 1920s. Despite their initial success, a number of missteps, including the release of the unpopular Rabbit, caused sales to plummet. According to a Wall Street Journal article, "By 1992, U.S. annual sales had hit a low of 49,000 cars, and VW contemplated pulling out of the U.S. altogether." Just six years later, following the launch of the new Beetle, the company began its comeback. In 2000, the car company reported its best U.S. sales month in 26 years. In 2010, Volkswagen sold more than 250,000 cars in the U.S. — its best year since 2003.

Selasa, Oktober 04, 2011

Investor Ragu, Saham Asia Terpuruk Lagi


Investor Ragu, Saham Asia Terpuruk Lagi

Investor melarikan diri karena ragu atas kemampuan Yunani menghindari default.

SELASA, 4 OKTOBER 2011, 09:06 WIB
Hadi Suprapto
VIVAnews - Setelah penurunan tajam hari sebelumnya, saham Asia kembali merugi pada Selasa, 4 Oktober 2011.  Investor terus melarikan diri dari aset berisiko karena ragu atas kemampuan Yunani menghindari default yang bisa memicu gejolak keuangan dan resesi global.

Seperti dikutip Reuters, Indeks Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) dari saham Asia Pasifik di luar Jepang, turun 1,53 persen, melayang dekat titik rendah sejak 16 bulan. Indeks MSCI  telah turun sekitar 3,6 persen pada Senin kemarin. Sedangkan indeks Nikkei pagi ini jatuh 1,7 persen, Hang Seng jatuh 0,8 persen, dan Strait Times anjlok 1,7 persen.

Saham global jatuh ke level terendah sejak 15 bulan pada Senin, yang dipicu oleh turunnya saham keuangan akibat kekhawatiran atas eksposur utang zona euro.

Harga minyak turun lebih dari US$1 pada Selasa, tertekan oleh kekhawatiran utang dan nilai tukar dolar yang lebih kuat. Minyak mentah AS jatuh ke level rendah di US$75,92 per barel, sementara minyak mentah Brent turun ke level US$100,52.

Yen, mata uang yang sering dianggap sebagai safe haven, melayang di dekat puncak selama 10 tahun terakhir terhadap euro.

Investor kini lebih memilih emas, dan menyebabkan harga naik 1 persen. Sedangkan tembaga jatuh 4 persen karena investor membuang logam ini atas kekhawatiran perlambatan pertumbuhan.

Pembuat kebijakan Eropa bertemu pada Senin untuk membahas cara meningkatkan dana penyelamatan zona euro dan melaksanakan reformasi struktural yang telah disepakati. (umi)
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