After Hawaiian Airlines recently outsourced its reservation call center to the Philippines, some customers have had to wait 30 minutes to 45 minutes before they can speak with a representative.

Hawaiian Airlines spokesman Keoni Wagner said the delays are largely the result of a 30 percent spike in call volume. He said moving the call center to the Philippines only played a limited role in the delays.

Wagner added that some of the call center workers are trainees who are not as familiar with the airline's operations. They may be taking a minute longer to handle customer service calls, contributing to the backlog, he said.

"We apologize to any of our customers who have been inconvenienced," Wagner said. "We are working as hard and as fast as we can to add staff, and we expect to to see service levels continue to improve."

Wagner said the airline's call center operator, Citel, is hiring 40 additional workers to handle the increased volume. Citel also is providing additional training.

Wagner said that customers likely would have faced the same delays had Hawaiian not outsourced its call center given the high call volume.

"We've been seeing this for a couple of days," said Steve Danishek, owner of TMA Inc., a Seattle-based travel agency. "People can't get help or book reservations. They get nothing but difficulties."

Hawaiian, the state's largest airline, said it receives about 10 percent of its ticket purchases from phone-in customers while the majority of the airline's business comes from its Web site and from independent travel agents.

Customers' requests for information about flight changes, seating arrangements and schedules are handled by the airline's Philippines call center.

Danishek, the Seattle-based tour operator, said it takes two or three times as much time to change flight plans or seating plans now that Hawaiian employees are no longer taking customer service calls.

"Nobody is going to wait 45 minutes to find out where they are sitting," he said.

The Advertiser called Hawaiian's reservation number yesterday and waited 30 minutes before reaching a customer service agent.

The customer service rep, who would only give her first name as Bernadeth, apologized for the delay but said the center had a backlog of 100 phone customer calls at the time.

Hawaiian began transferring its reservation call center to the Philippines in April, eliminating 200 local positions.

The airline, which offered workers new jobs at the airline or buyouts, said the move was necessary to cut costs.

Similar outsourcing efforts have been implemented by competitors such as United Airlines and American Airlines, who have moved hundreds of reservation jobs to India since 9/11.

Hawaiian previously reached an outsourcing agreement with one of its biggest unions, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers District 141, after seeing how other airlines were laying off people, cutting benefits or terminating pensions and retirement plans.

Labor costs have traditionally been the biggest expense for airlines, though in recent quarters fuel costs have spiked above those for worker salaries and benefits.

American Airlines, which began flying to India last year, operates a call center in India but reservations employees there only handle incoming calls from customers who live in that country.

In 2006, Hawaiian Airlines spent $228 million on labor. Hawaiian has more than 3,300 employees.

Reach Rick Daysog at rdaysog@honoluluadvertiser.com.