Cathay Pacific pilots fear mass sackings after management ultimatum at Hong Kong airline

Cathay Pacific pilots are worried about mass sackings following a management ultimatum to solve a long-running labour dispute by the end of next month or face changes that could bring “long-term consequences”.

Cathay’s director of flight operations, Anna Thompson, issued the warning in a letter to all pilots last Thursday, without specifying what changes Hong Kong’s flagship carrier was planning or what the consequences would be.

Pilots fear the airline could start firing cockpit crew who initiated, or are taking part in, a work-to-rule that has been going on since December 2014.

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“There are a number of challenges we need to resolve to make sure we can continue to grow and remain competitive in this tough industry,” Thompson wrote in the letter obtained by the Post.

“Without an agreement by May 31, we will have no option but to make changes which may have long-term consequences.”

The Hong Kong Aircrew Officers Association, representing 2,100 of Cathay’s 2,900 pilots, launched the work-to-rule action over a pay-rise dispute. ­Although the issue was resolved, pilots continued their industrial action because of other disputes, such as roster patterns.

They have been sticking to the bare minimum as laid out in their contracts, including not working on their days off, which they had been doing in the face of a cockpit crew shortage. The association has also initiated a “training ban”– forbidding members to join a programme for junior pilots that gives them the necessary training to be promoted to senior ranks

“Our growth, especially during a time of rapid expansion – we’re set to receive the first 12 of 48 A350s this year – depends on having crew skilled at the right levels, and at this point we’re being forced to consider measures to sustain and protect our operation,” Thompson said.

The airline management and the pilots’ union had agreed to restart negotiations early next month, she added.

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A Cathay spokesman yesterday declined to reveal what changes the airline would make if the dispute was not resolved by the deadline, which he said was essential for the carrier.

“To help make sure an agreement is reached by May 31, ­Cathay managers spent all of last week in meetings with the pilots’ union to prepare for the negotiations,” he added.

The association hit back at Thompson in a letter to its members this week.

“Whilst we recognise the need to solve these issues promptly, we in no way endorse a May 31 ultimatum. Let nobody be mistaken, all AOA resources are available to reach agreement, but we are very wary of ultimatum politics,” association chairman Rod Fogarty wrote.

“Cathay’s history is littered with failed ultimatum politics. We have not agreed to this imposed deadline and we do not consider this ultimatum helpful.”

A pilot asked: “Will they sack people, impose new contracts, bring in contract pilots or what? None of the possible solutions are going to improve the industrial situation and could end up being commercial suicide.”

The association’s last work-to-rule in 2001 led to the sacking of 49 pilots in one day. They were fired about a week into their action. A month into the action, Cathay’s then-chairman, James Hughes-Hallett, said it had already cost the airline HK$350 million.