Cathay Dragon said we are in customer service, so no masks unless we were ill: Flight Attendant

On 8 February 2020, Cathay Dragon cabin crew members held a rally in Tung Chung to support industrial action should the company refuse to negotiate with the union in ensuring a safe working environment amidst the coronavirus epidemic. 

Our reporter spoke with Jo, a cabin crew member from Cathay Dragon.

GoHK: Are you currently working as a flight attendant?

Jo: Yes, however, I just had my baby so I have no plans to fly at the moment.

GoHK: Do you plan on flying again soon?

Jo: Actually, my maternity leave just ended. So, I plan on returning to work any moment now.

GoHK: Would you be requested to fly to Wuhan?

Jo: Yes, probably. If the company requests that we fly there, and if they can ensure our safety. However, if they cannot ensure our safety then we may have to figure other ways to do it. 

GoHK: Please tell me about the purpose of this rally today.

Jo: When the Wuhan Coronavirus outbreak started to worsen at the beginning of January, many colleagues became increasingly worried. There has been a lot of pent up frustration and anxiety about the situation. 

Quite a few colleagues at the beginning of February wanted to initiate a strike but we couldn’t because of the regulation of the union. A meeting with all union members is required before we could vote on any industrial action. We had a general meeting yesterday and the motion was passed to allow industrial action. So, we brought everyone together at today’s assembly to strengthen our voice and talk about the need for action. 

GoHK: I understand that the motion was passed with 462 votes. So, when will this strike start?

Jo: When we passed the motion yesterday, it was to authorize the union to begin industrial action which includes the possibility of a strike and also other types of work action. We originally planned to strike on 9, 10 and 11 February - this was the idea a week ago. But we want to hold off on it for now. Once we decide to strike, we will probably give a very short notice beforehand rather than waiting for a week to do it.

GoHK: Cathay Dragon flew between Wuhan and Hong Kong before. How did the crew feel about that?

Jo: Cabin crew members were actually very worried, as we were only provided with a face mask for protection. Only until recently, the company started allowing us to wear gloves. There is also hand sanitizer but that’s all. Hospital workers are in full protective gear when treating infected patients but we don’t have that. My colleagues and I are extremely concerned. I haven’t started flying yet but I know that some of my colleagues have become paranoid, like germaphobics, they would take all their clothes off immediately after returning home and air them out on the balcony. They would clean themselves all over with bleach. They would push their kids and pets away if they tried to get close. A lot of us are under tremendous pressure.

On a returning flight from Wuhan, there was a couple on board who must have felt unwell. They wrapped themselves up tight. They neither talked nor ate. They avoid any contact with crew members. But if you think about it, in the aircraft we are all cramped up with little space between one another. I believe those colleagues who were on board must have been so nervous afterwards. 

GoHK: Have you heard of any crew member who has been infected after working on a Wuhan flight?

Jo: Luckily no, not yet. However, as far as I know there were 6 colleagues who were quarantined. Some of them stayed home for self-isolation and others went to a quarantine camp.

GoHK: Do you know in which quarantine camp?

Jo: I believe it’s the one at MacLehose.

GoHK: So, that was pretty early on.

Jo: Yes, it was.

GoHK: Do you know if any of these quarantined colleagues are experiencing emotional health problems? Has anyone gone to the doctor? Has anyone resigned?

Jo: I know a few of them who are psychologically and emotionally exhausted. They didn’t know what would happen and what it would be like inside the quarantine camp. Most of all, they were worried that they might have been infected. When they came out, the union has been supporting them by organizing general meetings and letting others know about their experience. 

I have contacted them personally to see if they can come out and join us today but they are all feeling too exhausted and also need to catch up on personal matter at home. 

GoHK: What type of protective equipment would you like the company to provide? Is there anything they could give you that would make you feel comfortable and confident enough to fly to Wuhan?

Jo: Actually, we just want Cathay Dragon to stop all flights to Wuhan. It would be impossible for crew members to be in full protective gear, like at the hospitals, for so many hours while serving our passengers. 

What we really, really want is to stop all flights to China. It’s not that we never want to fly there again, it’s just that those regions are not safe right now. 

We want to set some rules with the company where we will stop flying to a place once there is an outbreak of the Wuhan Pneumonia or when a certain number of cases have been confirmed. We really want to have some regulations in place for the future. Right now, we still have to fly to Beijing and Shanghai - these cities have close to 300 cases each. Shenzhen has over 300 cases. So, these places are not safe.

Once this epidemic is over, we hope to set some reasonable parameters with the company. Once our health is no longer at risk from infection, we will have no problem going back to work. 

GoHK: What kinds of protective equipment are the most needed right now?

Jo: Just now, the company said they would provide us with two masks per day. It seems like hand sanitizers are in short supply. Even with protective equipment, we are still talking about 200-300 passengers from China with whom we will be in close contact with on each flight. It won’t be safe enough, even if we are given 20 masks or gloves a day. 

GoHK: So how would you like Cathay Dragon to deal with the issues at hand?

Jo: For sure, we would like Cathay Dragon to stop all flights to China immediately. We hope that they will negotiate with our union. Often, the company fails to make precise decision, nor do they act swiftly to resolve issues. We the employees often end up suffering because of the delay of their decision. 

Why do we have such a bad impression of our company? At the beginning of this outbreak, we asked whether we could wear face masks. Cathay Dragon said that only those who fly to Wuhan could wear face masks. But in fact, the epidemic was already spreading all over China. We fought for a long time before everyone was allowed to wear a mask on flights to China. I think they were only following guidelines from the WHO and the government. It seemed like they did not listen when we asked. Had they allowed us to wear masks right from the start, then we would trust our company more. 

Cathay Dragon told us not to panic, as there was not yet any case of human-to-human transmission according to WHO. The company also said we are in customer service and there should be no need to wear masks unless we were ill. 

GoHK: Do you think Cathay Dragon has neglected your safety?

Jo: I think Cathay Dragon worried about too many other things like whether the company would go bankrupt and how the operations will be affected. However, I don’t think they put priority on the life of the crew members. 

GoHK: Thank you for your time.