Govt Must Ensure Cathay Won't Cut Staff: Jeremy Tam

Civic Party lawmaker and former Cathay pilot Jeremy Tam has urged Hong Kong officials to make sure that Cathay Pacific does not lay off staff after it receives a massive government funding injection and goes ahead with a reorganisation.

The government will lend HK$7.8 billion to the company and buy shares worth HK$19.5 billion in the airline which has been hit hard by travel restrictions across the world due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Tam said a lot of employees have already volunteered to take unpaid leave to help the financially struggling company.

So when the taxpayers’ money is being loaned to the airline, the government should ensure that their jobs are protected, he said.

Tam said he understands many governments have been providing financial aid to the struggling airline industry. But the lawmaker said he’s concerned that the SAR’s planned use of public money will bypass Legco scrutiny.

He also said he's worried about the move to place two observers ion the director board of Hong Kong’s flagship carrier.

Tam said he feared this will be a ploy to carry out a political mission to punish the airline's staff.

Cathay had sacked some employees over their links to the anti-government agitation after mainland aviation authorities banned such staff on flights to the mainland.

Employees were also asked to refrain from making comments about the social unrest on their personal social media accounts.