hankyoreh

Following the news on Mar. 11 that China Eastern Airlines, one of China’s three largest privately owned airlines, has fired South Korean flight attendants en masse, clear evidence has surfaced that their termination was unfair. There are serious procedural questions about how they were notified and concerns about the fairness of their termination. The airline ought to immediately reverse this unjust decision.

The termination applied to 73 flight attendants who joined the company in its 14th hiring period, in March 2018, amounting to 35% of the 206 South Korean flight attendants employed by China Eastern Airlines. They were contract workers on the verge of being converted to regular employees. It’s been customary at the airline to upgrade employees who complete a two-year contract to permanent positions. The termination came as a sudden shock to flight attendants who were expecting to get a permanent job.

In an email notifying the flight attendants that their contracts were being ended, the airline cited “management difficulties caused by overall changes in the aviation industry, including the reduction in flights between South Korea and China resulting from the spread of COVID-19.” That argument isn’t very persuasive, considering that 67 Japanese employees who joined the airline at the same period still have their jobs. China Eastern Airlines had previously courted controversy when it concentrated its South Korean flight attendants on domestic flights in China — including Wuhan, epicenter of the COVIC-19 outbreak — from December until early January. This additional decision to fire South Korean flight attendants is prompting accusations of “Korea-phobia.”

It’s also unclear whether the airline followed the proper procedures and met the requirements for firing the flight attendants. They didn’t receive their notification, which was made by email, until Mar. 9, two days before the expiration of their contract. They’d apparently even taken online classes through the airline in preparation for “emergency training” scheduled for the end of the month. There’s plenty of reason to think they took it for granted that their contracts would be renewed. That’s supported by the fact that the airline had promised to give them new uniforms.

Even a leave consent form that China Eastern Airlines had its South Korean flight attendants sign indicates that the airline’s notification of termination wasn’t appropriate. (On Feb. 6, the airline decided to put all its South Korean flight attendants on paid leave in February and March, during which time they’d only receive their base pay.) On the form, the flight attendants agreed to go on leave on the condition that they’d return to work after the leave period was over, unless they voluntarily resigned from their positions. The airline’s behavior is a clear violation of its promise.

All but two of the flight attendants who were notified of their termination have rejected individual settlements and are reportedly planning to set up an action committee to take legal action, such as suing for their termination to be invalidated. It’s only natural that they’d take such action. We hope that China Eastern Airlines will quickly apologize to its employees and reverse its unfair measures before it gets entangled in a legal battle.

Please direct comments or questions to [english@hani.co.kr]