The Taoyuan Flight Attendants’ Union yesterday protested at the EVA Air Marathon, handing out white roses outside the Presidential Office Building to mourn a flight attendant who reportedly died after working on a long-haul flight despite being ill.
Members of the union held up white roses and chanted, “Life is priceless; requesting leave is not a crime,” during the opening ceremony of the marathon.
Several union members crossed the track to post their demands on the stage, which prompted a brief police intervention.
Photo: CNA
The union urged the company’s chairman and president to accept their three demands.
First, sick leave, special leave and disaster leave should not affect employee performance evaluations, and punishments such as heavier performance evaluation deductions for taking leave on weekends, national holidays and peak days should be canceled.
Second, special annual leave should be treated the same as working a scheduled shift, with no negative impact on performance evaluations, scheduling rights and shift swaps.
Third, the company should not restrict or prohibit shift swaps when a flight attendant takes leave, as shift swaps are not a reward, but an arrangement that helps flight attendant balance work and their personal lives.
EVA Air proposed to have an assistant manager accept the petition, union secretary-general Chou Sheng-kai (周聖凱) said, adding that they were disappointed and rejected the proposal, as only a higher-level executive could make commitments.
The company did not respond further.
EVA Air management greeted the runners on the stage, but ignored the union members who shouted in tears during the protest, Chou said.
The company has not issued a a condolence letter since the flight attendant’s death, he added.
The Ministry of Labor said it reached a consensus with EVA Air that taking sick leave would not affect performance evaluation, but the company did not make any commitment during its negotiation with the union nor in its statement regarding its investigation, Chou said, adding that they would protest outside the ministry on Thursday.
EVA Air’s policies discourage flight attendants from taking sick or special leave, which ultimately harms passengers, union president Steven Chang (張書元) said.
The union has been negotiating improvements to the leave system for 10 years, but supervisors always blame the flight attendants and say they “love taking leave,” union executive director and EVA Air flight attendant Lin Yu-chia (林昱嘉) said.
Flight attendants worry about being seen as “irresponsible” and feel guilty for taking leave, Lin added.
“Flight attendants are human beings,” she said. “They have the right to rest, to maintain their lives and to protect themselves. Sick leave, special leave and natural disaster leave should not be penalized.”
EVA Airways on Friday last week outlined possible policy, such as requiring chief and deputy pursers, who oversee flight attendants onboard the aircraft, to relieve any cabin crew member deemed unfit for duty and to report the situation to the company.
Under the proposal, a crew member who feels unwell would be sent back to Taiwan as a passenger, while other crew on the flight would receive a bonus for taking on extra work.
The airline said it also plans to revise its job performance review system by the end of the year to “allow margin for sick leave,” but did not say what measures would be implemented.
Additional reporting by CNA
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