Asiana pilots' union embroiled in internal feud

Asiana Airlines' headquarters in western Seoul

By Lee Hyo-sik

Kim Soo-cheon Asiana Airlines CEO

Asiana Airlines is facing increasing uncertainty regarding its pilots’ union, which is embroiled in an internal feud between union leadership and members over a tentative wage agreement that the former reached with management.

Korea’s second-largest carrier, which has been hit by an exodus of its pilots, brought on by rapidly growing Chinese airlines, needs a more stable relationship with the union, as it struggles to bolster its sluggish business.

Asiana Pilots’ Union (APU) said Monday that it is holding a vote of confidence on its leadership through Oct. 26. The unprecedented move came after a tentative agreement on wage negotiations that union leaders struck with company management was voted down by the members of the union.

Of 566 pilots who cast ballots on Oct. 8, more than 66.4 percent voted against the provisional accord.

In September, management headed by CEO Kim Soo-cheon and the pilots’ union reached a consensus concluding this year’s wage negotiations. Both sides agreed to freeze the base salary and hike a safety-related allowance by 10,000 won a month, among other things.

Union leaders said at the time that the pilots could not demand a wage hike when the company was in such bad shape. The carrier was struggling to cope with a plane accident at Hiroshima International Airport in April.

The company also suffered a plunge in the number of passengers in July and August following the outbreak of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome.

However, Asiana pilots decided not to accept the tentative agreement and instead hold a vote of confidence on the leadership.

The Korea Times contacted APU for a comment, but it refused to make contact, citing the sensitivity of its nature.

Asiana also remains cautious about commenting on the situation, saying that it is taking a wait-and-see attitude until the pilots’ union sorts things out internally.

“We will engage in negotiations with the union when the new leadership is formed,” an Asiana spokesman said. “But it is unfortunate that the pilots rejected the tentative agreement. Both sides will have to negotiate again, which will take considerable time, when all the Asiana family members must join together to revitalize the company.”

APU’s internal dispute came as pilots called for higher wages and better working conditions as more and more company aviators moved to Chinese and other foreign carriers, which offer higher salaries and more generous benefits.

According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, a total of 54 Asiana pilots moved to foreign carriers in the first nine months of 2015.

Despite the pilot exodus, Asiana has been saying that it cannot afford to raise wages, citing its deteriorating bottom line.

In the second quarter, the carrier posted an operating loss of 61.4 billion won. FN Guide and other stock market information providers projected that the company would post about 78 billion won operating profit in the third quarter, significantly lower than the initial forecast of 132 billion won.

Asiana applies for 2nd LCC license

Air Seoul, a low-cost carrier (LCC) set up by Asiana in March, said Monday that it submitted an application to the transport ministry for a business license. Asiana operates budget carrier Air Busan based at Gimhae International Airport.

After receiving the license, Air Seoul plans to lease Airbus 321-200 planes and operate on Asiana’s short-distance routes in 2015, connecting Korea with destinations in China, Japan and Southeast Asian countries.