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Southwest Airlines’ board of directors firmly rebutted suggestions from the company’s four largest unions that their top executives be ousted for poor performance. The labor groups - representing the airline’s flight attendants, pilots, mechanics and ground staff - had spent the prior week calling for the exit of CEO Gary Kelly and COO Mike Van De Ven for actions which led the company to stock buybacks, cost-cutting measures, and aging reservation systems that had suffered flight disruptions over the years, including several days of cancelled and delayed flights this past July. The board of directors denied any merit in the unions’ vote of no-confidence, and noted that such accusations at a time of labor negotiations were a bargaining ploy. In its letter on Friday, the board expressed that their company has never been stronger, with increased salaries, benefits and service expansion at a time when other airlines had closed or gone bankrupt. The president for the Transport Workers Union Local 556 noted on Saturday that union negotiations have remained protracted due to the company’s increasing emphasis on figures rather than its long-standing culture based on employee morale.