Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific back on hiring spree in anticipation of take-off in global air travel, but faces recruitment challenges

When Jasmine Lau received an email from Cathay Pacific Airways last month asking if she wanted to return to her old job as a flight attendant, she contemplated the proposition, but eventually decided against applying.

Almost two years after being laid off from the airline’s now-defunct subsidiary Cathay Dragon, the Hongkonger, who is in her 30s, is now working as an administrative officer in a bank.

“All my friends, we changed careers and now we are getting used to the new job and we don’t want to go back to something that is not secure and not stable,” said Lau, referring to herself and her flight attendant friends from Cathay Dragon.

She is among thousands whom Hong Kong’s flagship carrier let go in October 2020 when it shed 5,900 jobs, closed down Cathay Dragon and underwent a HK$39 billion (US$5 billion) restructuring led by the government.

Now, Cathay Pacific Group is looking to go on a hiring spree that will add 8,000 new staff across its subsidiaries. Some 4,000 of them will be recruited for Cathay Pacific Airways between now and the end of 2023, of which 700 will be pilots and 2,000 are cabin crew. The airline is looking ahead to a recovery in air travel, even as Hong Kong continues to stick to its “dynamic-zero” Covid-19 strategy.

In an interview with the Post on June 15, Cathay Pacific CEO Augustus Tang Kin-wing said the “direction of travel was there” and the airline wanted to be prepared as it took time to train and recruit new staff.

“We are very confident that Hong Kong will be opening up. We are making this preparation. We are making this commitment and investment in recruiting so many people ahead of time,” he said.