Japan Airlines Co. plans to let its flight attendants age 50 or older choose fewer working hours with salary cuts from fiscal 2021 starting next month, amid weak travel demand due to the coronavirus pandemic, company sources said Tuesday.
The airline will cut both working hours and pay for flight attendants either by 20% or 40% depending on the option they choose, without asking them to specify the reason for enrolling, according to the sources.
JAL has already conveyed the plan to its labor unions, they said, adding the 40% cut will be available only for one year in fiscal 2021.
The company plans to allow experienced flight attendants to continue working on a reduced basis, with the 20% cut in hours to be available beyond the next fiscal year, expecting them to take time for raising children or caring for parents, as well as engage in volunteer activities.
JAL will also introduce paid leave for all cabin crew for the purpose of infertility treatment in fiscal 2021 and fiscal 2022 on a trial basis, according to the sources.
Meanwhile, JAL has no plan to provide summer and winter bonuses in fiscal 2021 due to the business uncertainty surrounding the air transportation industry.
JAL's largest labor union demanded an annual bonus equivalent to two months of salary and will seek to keep negotiating the issue with the management later in the year.
Hit hard by the pandemic, JAL has said its net loss for fiscal 2020 is expected to be ¥300 billion.
Its competitor All Nippon Airways Co. has yet to present any amounts for summer and winter bonuses for fiscal 2021, saying its earnings outlook remains unpredictable, while its largest labor union requested an annual bonus equivalent to one month of salary or more.