It’s Obvious Who Do Not Cherish CAL’s Corporate Image from the Vicious Strife of its Pilot Strike

 It’s Obvious Who Do Not Cherish CAL’s Corporate Image from the Vicious Strife of its Pilot Strike

United Daily News Editorial (Taipei, Taiwan)

February 11, 2019

 Translation of an Excerpt

After six hours of labor-management negotiations, the China Airlines pilots’ strike incident still ended with a breakdown. Under the coordination of the Transportation and Labor Ministries, the management’s attitude remained hardened, while on the part of the trade union, also because it had 500 pilots joining the strike action, appeared with no intention to make concessions. Thus, the impact facets of the strike will inevitably expand, time will drag on longer, affected flights will be more extensive, inconvenienced passengers will be more numerous, and China Airlines’ losses will be higher than estimated.

From the flight attendants’ strike to the pilots’ strike, in fact it is the inevitable evolution of labor consciousness awakening, and it is also intimately connected with the management’s attitude in coping. What is most deplorable is that on the first day of the strike, China Airlines immediately issued a notification, wielding a hatchet on striking pilots, announcing the "temporary suspension of employment relationships." It is not difficult to imagine that China Airlines’ immediate announcement of the "temporary suspension of employment relationships" originally intended to threaten the pilots, wanting them to harbor fear, afraid of losing their jobs or being punished later on, so that they would not dare to join the ranks of the strike. If this kind of despicable tactics should happen in a small private sector enterprise, perhaps it could be understandable. However, considering China Airlines’ scale and globalization, the company surprisingly dared to disregard laws and regulations in abusing this threatening approach, it would not be difficult to imagine how backward and shady its management level’s governance approach is, not minding at all the Labor Standard Act.

China Airlines Chairman Ho Nuan-hsuan, in handling the pilot protesting incident this time, poised a high-profile, unwilling to face squarely from the very beginning issues related to labor fatigue of pilots on long-haul flights. In dealing with the pilots who are the mainstay for flight safety, China Airlines’ high-echelons’ attitude was so contemptuous, how would the outside world believe that Ho Nuan-hsuan could indeed upgrade China Airlines’ corporate culture?

What is intriguing is that EVA Air’s pilot union this time similarly obtained the right to strike; however, labor and management finally compromised to secure an agreement, not allowing a strike to be staged. If EVA can, why not China Airlines? EVA is a family enterprise; its operators obviously cherish more the enterprise’s achievements and reputation, not willing to allow a strike to destroy the company’s good image that it has cultivated over the years. In contrast, China Airlines has state-run colors, with all its directors appointed by the government. In ordinary times, everyone seeks to grab high-paid positions, but once faced with problems, some would sit idly by, some would strike an arrogant pose, who would consider China Airlines "as if it were their own"?

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