Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+

Personnel Today

Register
Log in
Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+

ChinaCoronavirusLatest NewsEmployee communicationsLeave

Coronavirus: Cathay Pacific employees asked to take unpaid leave

by Jo Faragher 5 Feb 2020
by Jo Faragher 5 Feb 2020

Cathay Pacific Airways has asked its employees to take three weeks’ unpaid leave after it was forced to cut 90% of its mainland China flights due to coronavirus.

CEO Augustus Tang released an internal video announcement “appealing to each and every one of you to help”, introducing a “special leave scheme” where employees can take three weeks of unpaid leave between 1 March and 30 June.

Contingency planning

Infectious diseases 

Flu pandemic contingency plan

The scheme is not mandatory, but Tang called upon staff to “share in our current challenges” by taking a period of leave.

Around a fifth of all Cathay Pacific’s flights serve mainland China, where almost 500 people have died from the new coronavirus, a highly infectious respiratory virus that was detected in the Chinese city of Wuhan in December 2019.

This is not the first time the Hong Kong airline has introduced an unpaid leave scheme to ease its payroll bill – it also did so in 2009 during the global financial crisis. In his video, Tang said that the current situation was “just as grave”.

A Cathay flight attendant told a reporter from the Nikkei Asian Review: “My colleagues and I all understand the situation, but we are also extremely worried about our own financial situation. In this critical time, it is hard to look for another job. It’s already nice that we don’t get dismissed.”

Cathay Pacific employs around 27,000 staff. More than 20 airlines have now suspended flights to China and two cruise ships carrying more than 3,000 passengers are being held in quarantine off the coast of Japan.

Change management opportunities on Personnel Today

Browse more Change management jobs

Jo Faragher
Jo Faragher

Jo Faragher has been an employment and business journalist for 20 years. She regularly contributes to Personnel Today and writes features for a number of national business and membership magazines. Jo is also the author of 'Good Work, Great Technology', published in 2022 by Clink Street Publishing, charting the relationship between effective workplace technology and productive and happy employees. She won the Willis Towers Watson HR journalist of the year award in 2015 and has been highly commended twice.

previous post
Why empathy is the future workplace’s key to success
next post
‘Don’t panic’ about coronavirus, occupational health practitioners told

Leave a Comment Cancel Reply

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

You may also like

Introduce three-day week for over 50s, says former...

26 Sep 2023

Ralph Lauren stylist ‘traumatised’ by racial comments

26 Sep 2023

Government expands Youth Offer employment support

26 Sep 2023

Few dyslexic thinkers feel employer knows their strengths

26 Sep 2023

Sickness absence rates soar to 10-year high

26 Sep 2023

Personnel Today Awards 2023 shortlist: Family Friendly Employer...

26 Sep 2023

Three days in office is optimal hybrid working...

25 Sep 2023

Finance regulator consults on tougher conduct rules

25 Sep 2023

One in four over 50s working part-time

25 Sep 2023

Chris Kaba case: Officer federation hands in weapons...

25 Sep 2023

  • Discover the value of CIPD accreditation PROMOTED | See how the CIPD can increase your earning potential...Read more
  • What does it mean to be an HR professional in 2024? (survey) PROMOTED | The world of HR is changing rapidly...Read more
  • The Contractor Management Mastery Pack: Everything you need to manage and pay global contractors PROMOTED | Answers to cross-border...Read more

Personnel Today Jobs
 

Search Jobs

PERSONNEL TODAY

About us
Contact us
Browse all HR topics
Email newsletters
Content feeds
Cookies policy
Privacy policy
Terms and conditions

JOBS

Personnel Today Jobs
Post a job
Why advertise with us?

EVENTS & PRODUCTS

The Personnel Today Awards
The RAD Awards
Employee Benefits
Forum for Expatriate Management
OHW+
Whatmedia

ADVERTISING & PR

Advertising opportunities
Features list 2023

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin


© 2011 - 2023 DVV Media International Ltd

Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+