09-02-2011 19:00
Korean Air faces indictment over practice of hiring foreign pilots
By Lee Hyo-sik
The labor ministry has asked the prosecution to indict Korean Air, the nation’s largest flagship carrier, claiming its hiring practice of foreign pilots was “illegal.”
The Seoul Southern District Labor Office said Friday that it had thoroughly reviewed a complaint filed by unionized workers of Korean Air. It added that it would refer the case to the prosecution.
“We concluded that the airline’s method of employing non-Korean pilots violates the domestic law concerning the rights of dispatched workers. We asked the prosecution to indict Korean Air for hiring foreign aviators in an unlawful manner,” the labor office said.
On Dec. 31, the Korean Air Flight Crew Union complained to the office about the company’s hiring practice of foreign pilots. The union accused Korean Air of illegally employing nearly 400 non-Korean pilots as non-regular workers via job placement agencies overseas. This violates the “Dispatched Workers’ Protection Law.”
It said a pilot is not one of the 32 occupations that are allowed to be outsourced under the law. Those who violate the law are subject to up to three years in prison or a fine of 20 million won.
Korean Air currently employs 397 non-Korean pilots on a contract basis through eight employment agencies abroad.
They account for about 15.5 percent of the company’s total 2,550.
They usually sign a 5-year contract and receive wages from employment agencies. Flight schedules, training, holidays and other work-related matters are supervised by Korean Air.
Korea’s other flagship carrier Asiana Airlines employs 121 foreign pilots in the same way.
Conflicting views
The pilot union welcomed the labor office’s latest move, urging the prosecution to indict the airline.
“Even though the labor office forwarded the case to prosecutors eight months after our complaint was filed, we still welcome its decision. It is time for law enforcement authorities to take appropriate actions,” said Park Byoung-lyoul, secretary general of the Korean Air Flight Crew Union.
In 2003, the pilot union filed the same complaint to the labor office, which referred the case to the prosecution. Since the job placement agencies were based in foreign countries the complaint was not pursued.
Park said if prosecutors decided not to indict again, the union will initiate alternative legal action.
“It is not too late for the company to admit that its employment of foreign pilots is against the law. Korean Air should hire non-Korean aviators on a permanent basis and establish its own pilot training program as soon as possible to meet growing air travel demand,” he said.
In response Korean Air dismissed the pilot union’s claims, insisting that its hiring system of foreign pilots does not fall under the Dispatched Workers’ Protection Law because job placement agencies are registered overseas. “There is nothing wrong with our hiring system. We were cleared of the same charge brought by the union in 2003. Also, the law was primarily designed to protect low-income, non-permanent workers, not pilots who can earn up to 200 million won ($190,000) a year,” a Korean Air spokesman said.
He said the majority of non-Korean pilots want to be employed on a temporary basis.
“The company also needs to hire foreign aviators on a contract basis to more flexibly manage its workforce in accordance with economic cycles. If we are forced to dismiss all foreign pilots at once, 30 of our airplanes will be grounded, which will have a huge negative impact on economic activities here,” the spokesman said.
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