A Hong Kong pilot union has expressed “serious concern” over Cathay Pacific executives’ pay hikes as the flagship carrier still “struggles with severe staff shortages, rising ticket prices, and diminishing service quality.”
“Despite nearly HK$10 billion in profits, frontline workers, including pilots, cabin crew, and other staff groups, continue to face the effects of pay cuts and unaddressed detrimental contract changes since the pandemic,” said the Hong Kong Aircrew Officers Association (HKAOA) in a statement issued on Thursday.
Just one day prior, Cathay released its annual report for 2024, which disclosed the remuneration of its top executives. CEO Ronald Lam received the highest pay with a HK$14.15 million package – a 35 per cent increase from HK$10.46 million in 2023.
The chief operations and service delivery officer, Alexander McGowan, enjoyed the steepest pay increase. With a nearly 77 per cent hike, his 2024 remuneration rose to HK$8.18 million, from HK$4.63 million in 2023.
The union slammed the pay hikes, saying: “The disconnect between executive pay and frontline staff struggles cannot be ignored.”
The HKAOA attributed Cathay’s high ticket prices to staffing shortages and called for “immediate action to address major staffing issues” by reinstating core provisions of “pre-Covid contracts for frontline staff.”
HKIA world’s sixth best
Meanwhile, Hong Kong International Airport has been ranked the sixth best in the world, and the city’s immigration authorities topped the list for the world’s best airport immigration services.
Hong Kong jumped from 11th place to sixth this year, finishing behind Singapore Changi, Doha Hamad, Tokyo Haneda, Seoul Incheon, and Tokyo Narita, according to airline consultancy Skytrax’s list.
This year marked Hong Kong’s fifth win in the best airport immigration service category.
See also: Flight operations take off at Hong Kong third runway, clearing way for airport capacity increase
Director of Immigration Benson Kwok attended the award ceremony on Wednesday in Madrid, Spain, according to a department statement.
Singapore Changi, Bahrain, and Taiwan Taoyuan finished behind Hong Kong in the ranking for best airport immigration service.
The rankings were based on a global survey of over 13 million air travellers from more than 100 nationalities, Skytrax said.
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