flight attendant

customer service representative

pilot

baggage handler

warehouse supervisor

Horizon Air

This is by far the worst place I have ever worked and I have years of positive work experience. If you value your A&P license don't even think about this place.They staff around sixty mechanics 24-7-365 and during the two year period I worked there over thirty mechanics left the station, left Horizon, or were fired. That's not great job security. Over the door in the break room they kept a list of those people as a joke. If you do get a job at Horizon expect low pay with high work expectations, about $20.00/hr to start with $1,00 raise/ year. Learn to Taxi a 35 million dollar aircraft with a minimum of about four hours training around a lot of other aircraft packed with people at one of the busiest airports in the world for about 20 bucks an hour. How many years of training do pilots receive before being aloud to taxi there? While working at Horizon I experienced extremely high stress levels a lot of it caused by the culture and harassment, especially if you are an older mechanic, that is to be expected and tolerated. Also while there I witnessed numerous other mechanics suffer immense emotional breakdowns, one even suffered a stroke. The people who did make it more than two years spend most of the time watching movies or playing on computers and aren't expected to do much of anything because they are saved for the big stuff. Not! Training at the station from senior mechanics was horrible or non existent because nobody wanted to do it. One of the most frustrating things was that they really push the dirty dozen but in reality its was all for show and they didn't walk the talk at all. Say anything and be shunned. I have never experience hypocrisy like it before. If you believe Horizon is part of Alaska airlines its not! If you think you can transfer to Alaska forget it. You are generally the same as someone applying from outside unless you have some sort of in or maybe relative. When I left Horizon the head of the company promised, through the union, to try to get me a job in the hanger at Alaska but couldn't promise anything. I never heard anything from him again. No phone call-nothing. Anyway if you want to try Horizon Good luck!

Mornings we would prep the aircraft with food and drinks, check on bad and freight deliveries that needed to be made, which had arrived on the previous nights late flight. Then prepare paperwork and weather reports for the outgoing pilots and deice the aircraft if necessary. Evenings we would clean the aircfaft interiors.

Some of the people working there were mostly just interested in the flight benefits and if you wanted to you could pick up some of their hours, but it wouldn't count toward overtime. Horizon also had some very conscientious and dedicated workers, which was a major factor that kept me coming back in the busy seasons. 

They had a two-tier pay system and some years the manager would advise workers on the lower tier that there was a good chance for advancement to the higher tier, however; more often than not, that turned out to be a false promise.  

Also, It was much easier to pick up someone else's hours than it was to get them to fill in for you, if you had some business that needed attended to outside of work. 

I worked there pre-9/11 and understood how airport security then was most a charade and that something need to be done to improve it. However, I never dreamed that would grow into the big TSA boondoogle that it has - and yet there still are holes in the security system, as evidenced by a Horizon Airline employee in Seattle who last year stole an airplane and crashed it!

They also seemed to have too many middle managers as I found when I requested a simple upgrade to a thicker mil in their plastic refuse bags, which would spill liquid over much of the galley when we emptied the aircraft trash. Ten managers reviewed this request (which was denied, presumable to save money).

This place is toxic. You do NOT get paid what you deserve and you are expected to work harder and longer than most. Management does not give a care about you and they will fire you at any given moment for anything they can come up with. For example a fellow coworker who was the sweetest hardest working guy out on the ramp just got fired for something that happened over a month ago and that was an honest mistake that didn't hurt anyone and was not that big of a deal. They keep records of "wrongs" such as when you call out (even if its because you are deathly ill) and wont tell you about it, then they will come use it against you when it is convenient for them. 
They treat us like machines not people. They don't appreciate us at all. Through all that has happened in 2020 they have shown us that they care more about saving a dollar than saving our lives. They have not offered hazard pay at all, they expect us to be at work and working outside in HAZARDOUS conditions no matter what. Many of us have gotten sick or even COVID-19 because of their lack of respect and care for their employees. 
The ONLY decent thing about this job is the flight benefits and even then you have no promise that you will actually get on the plane. And if you miss a flight then you're late to work, thats another reason for them to randomly fire you at any given moment.
On top of it all your schedule will dehumanize you. They won't pay you over time if you pick up because "they didn't give you the hours". Even if you work over 50 hours a week which many of us do. They will schedule you 7-10 days in a row and be able to get away with it for how they schedule you and again, you wont get over time. They will mando you to stay till 3:30am and you don't get to say "no" or it gets written down in your records giving them yet, another reason to fire you.
YOU ARE NOT SAFE HERE.
Ready, safe, go is there motto and they do NOT live by it whats so ever. 

Like in many industries you have to take the good with the not so good. Horizon offers inspiring work (if you are into crawling around airplanes and helping out customers). And as a subsidiary of Alaska, you get great flight benefits that extend to carriers worldwide. The company seems very caring and ethical as a whole. A few drawbacks: Even though part of Alaska, the local (small station) training and OJT is very loosey goosey and sometimes seems more like fraternity hazing week than useful professional development. Also, the shift scheduling is a bit dicey sometimes. Yes, it’s seniority bidding so no whining about that, but again it seems at the small stations the shift bids are customized to fit the whims of the senior-most crew before they get posted publicly — leaving little flexibility for newer part-timers to make bids that account for life outside of the airport. It’s also getting tougher and tougher to give away or trade hours. It seems like there used to be more hungry “hour-eaters” who would pick up shifts to make money while making life more manageable for busy part timers. Butit seems like that’s faded too now (since Covid) that we all work split shifts that can extend 4 or 6 paid hours out over entire days sometimes. Anyway, Horizon hires good people, most of them do their best, and there is no malice in their weaknesses… but the training and scheduling thing just isn’t conducive to great morale, professional development and retention.

What is the best part of working at the company?
The ability to work in different rolls within the company. Can not only get experience in the rolls with extensive training, but also breaks up the monotony of 1 position.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
The job was becoming increasingly more toxic. Between the passengers having less respect and  the disconnect within the company’s leadership. Problems that needed addressing were being swept to the side. The company has been through regular changes as usual, but I felt was getting increasingly more difficult to enforce regulations and this was encouraging new employees to continue bad habits, as there was no recourse. I understand that it is difficult to get employees in these times, but the company no longer seemed to foster good work ethic. Integrity was becoming a thing of the past.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Work environment was highly stressful. You MUST have a lot of patience and be able to handle high stress situations. Traveling is stressful for people, but most people can be eased. The problem is when the stress comes from within, this can become a real problem. There is definitely a “mean girl” culture that has been allowed and this affects the new employees coming in. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Very fast paced. Good customer service is a MUST. Checking people in at the counter and gate duties are all based on timelines that have to be met, so you need to be efficient in the computer. There is almost always a problem between the employees and you will either hear about it or walk away.

Schedule: The scheduling works off of seniority so if your new you're going to be stuck with the worst schedule until a new person is hired, then they get the worst schedule and and you get the second worst and so on.

Pay: The pay is very low for the amount of work and expertise required to safely do your job. Part of working for horizon is being crosstrained (ramp/customer service) but there is no raise for having both certifications. There are also roles like Load Cordinator and Departure Cordinator, none of which result in any sort of pay raise after being certified. Those roles also take allot more responsibility and training than the base ramp worker role. 

Benefits: Horizon offers great Health, Vision and Dental insurance for very cheap which can make up for the lack of good hourly wages. Horizon also offers a unlimited free standby for you and buddy passes for your friends to fly cheap. If you already have a good income working here part time is a great way to travel for cheap.

Work: The work is fun and a good exercise but can get grueling when you have bad schedules. If you enjoy physical activity that isn't completely overwhelming but still a challenge this would be a great job for you. However when it's 1am and you're stuck unloading a 737 it can take a toll on your motivation. The work you're doing also feels meaningful because you are responsible for keeping the passengers and flight crew safe by making sure the plane is properly loaded and balanced.

The most enjoyable part of the job was the variation in training and responsibilities. This was also the hardest part of the job - a jack of all trades but an expert in none. In the first three months I was overwhelmed with the amount of information I was learning, and the schedule could be a late night, then an early morning as a variable time employee. It wasn't the most condusive to learning well. The organization itself does have some guidelines, but the rural stations do not have the luxury of abiding by them - they are limited to how many employees they can hire so they do some juggling. It isn't the managers fault - just the structure. I stayed there a year - and we still did not have the staff for a family medical leave - my husband went in for knee replacement surgery and in December of 2011 I juggled 23 doctor appointments that month in addition to working for the station while they trained new people. They also offer incredible flight benefits - but no one had time to take them - with only one or two days off at a time.... Just disorganization. My friends in the Skywest station at the same airport start off with three days off in a row after the first 30 days to guarantee the employees get to experience the travel and flights they promised. I was disappointed in the time I spent with Horizon, but appreciate the training that is under my belt and can be utilized with a future job with another airline.

* My typical work day would start by reviewing mechanical interuption summary from previous day. Prepare for a meeting at 0830 to discuss mechanical interuptions from previous day, and provide insight, and or solutions for any aviodable interuptions. After the meeting was over, I would implement any necessary corrective actions or initiate follow up as necessary.
During the day, I would work closely with the Maintenance Control department to assure that any aircraft experiencing mechanical difficulty were being dealt with in a safe, compliant, and effecient manner in order to minimize any flight interuptions.
I would also work on long term projects such as vendor contracts.
Review the "scheduled nightly aircraft maintenance workload" to assure that necessary staff, parts, and equipment were on hand to assure successful completion of scheduled maintenance activity.

* Every day, I would learn something new about our aircraft systems, or meet a new co worker in a different city.

* Management very driven for continuous improvement and cost reduction.

* Great co workers that were very dedicated to their careers.

* The most difficult part of the job was probably dealing with the daily stress of operating an airline.

* The most enjoyable part of the job, was the satisfaction received from a safe and compliant operational day free from mechanical interuptions.

Boarding passengers to destinations all over the world. I am still currently working there and enjoy the challenges and adversities each minute of the day. Nothing is ever the same. Always on the go and helping others.

My coworkers are the ones that help me get through all of it, so many people and situations. Every person is different and every situation is different. My coworkers understand the challenges and want to help.

The hardest part is being on time with the boarding. You have actually 20 minutes to get 76 people on the aircraft and have paper work done, so the doors can be closed by the 30 minute mark, or you will take a delay and that causes a lot of problems. I have learned to avoid that situation and I am very good at what I do.

I truly enjoy interacting with each person, the stories they have to tell, the experiences they have been through. I feel I have traveled with them also. My coworkers and I share a lot of stories too, that have happened throughout the day. Fabulous stories and not so fabulous also, but enjoyable to participate in and be a listener too.

Patience, listening, helping, careing, compassion and having fun most oif all.

A great experience over all, I am moving to the Port Angeles area with my family and will continue working at Horizon Air, until I find a permanent position in the Port Angeles area. I truly don't want to leave Horizon Air, but the logistics and travel time to and from the airport is not a good situation for me.

Management  of Above and below wing operations( inside /outside)include guest experience checkin, gate, boarding, luggage loading, deicing, fleet, cleaning Aircraft Employee and guest Safety and Compliance, cargo operations, financial performance management , DOT, FAA,TSA compliance.

Learned to Support and Engage a Team 
Learned to own and run a business
Employee and leadership Mentorship and coaching
Learned Employee discipline 
Learned how to Manage Perceptions 

Management Performance reviews for me were based on perception from employees and or upper management more than performance results, which is unfair. Perceptions may or may not be true. Reviews should be based on measurable performance and goals that are achieved.

Hardest part of the job was not receiving recognition for the accomplishments and great work that I achieved. 

Most enjoyable was the people that I met whether it was team members, tenants, and guests/customers/guests. In addition I found the job rewarding supporting a team.

Great partnerships were created in my time with this company. During my 18 years I was fully vested and gave my life to this company.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Flight attendant 3 salaries reported	$29,333 per year
Customer service representative 3 salaries reported	$18.33 per hour
Pilot 6 salaries reported	$57,975 per year
Baggage handler 2 salaries reported	$18.93 per hour
Warehouse supervisor 1 salary reported	$33.50 per hour

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