Thanks to Hong Kong's spirit of free economy, Cathay Pacific Airways has grown to become a well-known international carrier as well as our de facto flagship carrier in the short span of little more than 50 years. There is no excuse, however, for their pilots to act selfishly by taking industrial action that puts the interests of everyone else at risk.

The interruption caused by their industrial action has already reached an alarming level. At one point in time, as many as 20% of the flights were cancelled due to pilots calling in sick at the last minute. Thousands of passengers were stranded at the airports, not to mention that many travellers had to make additional stopovers on their journeys as an alternative or having to cancel their trips completely. The number of disappointed and angry passengers is hard to estimate but one thing is for sure --- this is not the kind of service they deserve for the amount of money that they pay. It is also most unfair to the passengers to have their travel plans disturbed in this unreasonable way.

The pilots, mostly foreigners, have in fact been enjoying extremely attractive packages that come to around HK$3.3 Million and HK$2.75 Million per year for their A-scale and B-scale colleagues respectively. It was their latest demand for a pay increase as high as 32% to reflect the "going rate" together with their work-to-rule campaign that raised the concerns of Cathay's management. In response, a well-above-the-market-offer of 9.5% was extended across the board without any conditions but the pilots' union was adamant on their demands.

Comparing to their counterparts in other carriers, pilots in Cathay are already much better off. According to a recent pay survey on pilots with 15 years of experience conducted by Financial Times and the German carrier "Lufthansa", Cathay pilots make the highest pay among 15 other major carriers. Whether they have been paid the "going rate" seems to need no further explanation.

Aviation is not a business on its own. Air transport is vital to Hong Kong's economy and it relates closely with businesses such as hotel industry, catering, wholesale and retail among many others. If the industrial action continues, one can easily imagine how these other businesses will be hit, leading to ultimate economic losses for the entire economy in a multiplying magnitude. It will be the general working class who suffers most at the end.

Of an equally imminent concern is the damage to Hong Kong's reputation both as an economic hub and as a world city ----- an image that has a lot of appeal to foreigners and is key to our recovering tourism industry. Unlike economic losses which we could hope to recover with time, damage to a city's reputation is somewhat difficult to make good, if at all possible. Somehow the pilots should see it for themselves what we are losing before it is too late.

Curbing their right to industrial action may seem unreasonable but industrial action is hardly a long-lasting solution, particularly when looking at its recurrent nature in recent years. Given the economic importance of air transport, both parties should have the best interests of Hong Kong at heart and aim at reaching a settlement before the whole situation is blown out of proportion. If and when necessary, the SAR government could act as a mediator to facilitate communication, and give the parties concerned a free hand in sorting out their own dispute.

It was only when Cathay's management made the decision to release 52 pilots, and to use chartered flights from the Mainland did the situation cool off a bit. It is an encouraging sign that the pilots are beginning to realize the need to go back to the negotiation table. Hopefully this time around they would use better judgement and take into account the welfare of Hong Kong, its citizens as well as other world travellers.

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