Apparently not long.
Cathay Pacific management has signalled it is willing to talk with protesting cabin crew members over pay demands following a mass sit-in that began at Chek Lap Kok airport yesterday.
“We are ready to talk with the [Flight Attendants’] Union (FAU),” chief executive Ivan Chu said.
The round-the-clock sit-in, launched by hundreds of flight attendants, will last until 10am tomorrow, with 1,300 members voting for action.
The FAU threatened to escalate their ongoing protest at the airport with work-to-rule action in August if the company does not meet their demands related to pay and benefits by the end of the sit-in.
In response, union chairwoman Dora Lai Yuk-sim said: “We welcome [Ivan Chu’s] direction to talk. It’s really up to management to show their sincerity and arrange to meet up.”
However, the union warned if talks did not get underway by the Thursday morning deadline then industrial action plans would be stepped up.
When asked if he was concerned about disruption to passenger travel during the busy summer period, Chu said: “We are concerned that our staff is not happy. We hope to sit down with the union as soon as possible.”
READ MORE: Cathay Pacific cabin crew stage marathon sit-in at Hong Kong airport
The first demand concerns employees who have finished their initial three-year contracts. Those who signed permanent contracts before April 2 got a pay increase from HK$144.70 per hour of flight to HK$176.80, but those who signed after April 16 would see their wages rise to only HK$159.30. The union wants the hourly rate to be set at HK$176.80 across the board.
Secondly, it is seeking to reverse a recent cut in the lunch allowance for flight attendants in Melbourne, granting them A$60 (HK$372) per meal instead of A$35 (HK$217).
The union also wants to reinstate a legal protection clause Cathay has deleted from its operational manual. That line states the airline will “cover all legal costs resulting from an incident occurring whilst on duty”.
“For our cabin crew who’ve served three years we offer a second contract with a double-digit pay rise. We think that is very reasonable compared with the market,” Chu insisted.
However, the increase is still less than what Cathay is offering longer-serving junior crew members.
Currently there are more than 100 cabin crew members who are yet to renew their contracts, Chu said, but the company expects most of them to accept terms.
He also said meal allowances are adjusted according to local price fluctuations, which is why the allowance for Melbourne was recently lowered. “As with legal protection it is a complete misunderstanding. The company will continue to provide legal protection to our staff,” he said.
Secretary for Labour and Welfare Matthew Cheung Kin-chung urged both parties to keep communicating, while his department was closely monitoring the situation.
“I have repeatedly called on both sides to exercise restraint; the most important thing is to maintain communication through direct dialogue to resolve their differences. We will always pay attention to, if necessary, [and] the Labour Department will provide conciliation services.”
The government said however that the Labour Department could not mediate in the dispute unless Cathay’s management and trade unions were consenting parties.