Doug Parker: Old American Airlines Was Hobbled by Labor Conflict

026CHARLOTTE, N.C. (TheStreet) — A frank Doug Parker said prior management of American Airlines (AAL_) was so hamstrung by conflicts with labor that its ability to manage the airline was reduced.

American became “an airline that couldn’t really achieve its potential because the management-labor relations had gotten so bad,” Parker, CEO of American following a merger with US Airways, said Monday, speaking at a JPMorgan investor conference. “There is so much to do when you get everybody excited and working together than you can’t do when they’re not.”

Parker answered a question from JPMorgan analyst Jamie Baker, who described the merger between American and US Airways as “a management takeover.” Baker said “the prior management team was insular and focused for many years more on liquidity” before asking, “where’s the benefit from a change in leadership?

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