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Labor disputes in the airline industry are not uncommon, but with Southwest Airlines, many are surprised that there might be drama playing out behind the scenes. That's in part because the carrier has done so well for a long time with customer and employee satisfaction.


According to The Wall Street Journal, Southwest has never laid off workers or cut their pay, and has only had one strike in its history - a six-day mechanics' walkout back in 1980. But now, Southwest is asking for some of the biggest contract changes ever from employees in an effort to contain costs.


Randy Barnes, a union representative for Midway's ramp workers told the Journal, "we built this airline, and now (management) is tearing it down."


Of the airline's 45,000 workers, about 83 percent are unionized, and part of the dispute over the new contract negotiations deals with the idea of freezing employee pay scales.


One of the reasons Southwest may be more concerned about operational costs is because of high fuel prices. That's something that has already forced them to change their method of offering short-haul flights between midsize cities, to longer flights between bigger cities, which use fuel more efficiently.


Southwest's CEO said the company saw record profits last year of $754 million, up from $421 million the year before. Yet, the company is not meeting its personal goals of returns on invested capital.


Customers may have noticed some changes as well. According to the Wall Street Journal, the average one-way fare for Southwest was $144 last year, which is up 21 percent from five years ago.