Korean Air Puts 70 Percent of Staff on Leave

South Korea's flag carrier, Korean Air, is placing 70 percent of its 19,000 workers on furlough, it said, because it is trying to deal with the coronavirus pandemic that has taken global aviation to a standstill.

The aviation industry is among the industries most impacted by the outbreak and the subsequent transportation bans, with thousands of flights canceled, services shortened and businesses experiencing financial uncertainty.

Korean Air is the flagship of the Hanjin Group, one of the multifaceted, family-controlled conglomerates known as chaebols that dominate business in South Korea and played a key part in its rise to become the world’s 12th-largest economy.

Most of its staff will go on leave from April 16 for six months in response to “deteriorating business circumstances”, Korean Air said in a statement.

According to normal South Korean practice, the workers will receive 70 percent of their normal pay, with most of it — reportedly up to 90 percent — funded by a government scheme for industries in need of special assistance due to the coronavirus.

Korean Air’s labor union agreed to participate as part of a “burden-sharing” initiative, the company said — executives have also agreed to take pay cuts.

The furlough measure comes after a months-long battle for control of the company between members of its founding Cho family.

Cho Hyun-ah, who had made global headlines for a “nut rage” scandal when she forced a taxiing plane back to the gate over a bag of macadamia nuts, sought to oust her brother Cho Won-tae from the chairmanship.

The brother took advantage of the task and won 56.67 percent of the shareholder vote last month.

The Hanjin Company was in financial difficulty even before the coronavirus epidemic created chaos on airline finances around the world — the Hanjin Shipping division was once one of the top 10 container lines in the country, but went bankrupt in 2017.

Source: AFP