TOKYO -- All Nippon Airways has proposed a more flexible work setup for flight attendants, including the option of working less for lower pay, with an eye on retaining jobs while reducing personnel costs.
The proposal, which has been submitted to labor representatives, is envisioned as a two-year measure starting in April. The initiative applies to all flight attendants, excluding those on the job for less than a year.
In addition to the current arrangement of working both domestic and international routes, cabin crew members could choose to work only domestic flights at half the usual load or work international flights at 50-80% of current levels. Pay would come to about half of normal for those working 50% of the work days, and around 75% for those working 80% of the days.
Scheduled shifts will be made more routine, giving flight attendants time to make plans for their days off. Work schedules, including off days, for a given month are currently released around the 25th of the prior month. The new arrangement would operate on a fixed cycle of four work days and two days off for domestic routes, with time off for those on international flights set on a semiannual basis in March and September.
The flexibility will expand the range of places flight attendants can reside as well. For those working half the normal load, the carrier will allow them to live more than 100 km from Tokyo's Haneda Airport and Narita Airport -- the current restriction for most cabin crew members. This would give flight attendants such opportunities as living in their hometowns and working second jobs.
With the pandemic-induced slump in air travel, maintaining employment has been a challenge in the industry. ANA Holdings' structural reforms announced in October include creating opportunities for employees to take second jobs and temporary transfers to other companies and municipalities.
