2011 February 9 - 15 TOP3 [
LABOR]
Dismissal of 165 workers was unnecessary: JAL Chair
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February 13, 2011
Japan Airlines Chair Inamori Kazuo said, “If asked if it was possible to keep the 165 workers, as you may know, it was not impossible.” The business leader made this remark during his speech at the Japan National Press Club on February 8.
Japan Airlines Chair Inamori Kazuo admitted that the company’s massive dismissal of 165 pilots and cabin attendants at the end of last year was not necessary in order to restore its management.
The business leader made this remark during his speech at the Japan National Press Club on February 8.
Inamori said, “If asked if it was possible to keep the 165 workers, as you may know, it was not impossible.”
Then why did the airline carry out the mass dismissal? According to Inamori, his company had no choice but to keep the promise it had made with a court and financial institutions based on the rehabilitation plan.
Under the rehabilitation procedure, JAL’s initial goal was to cut 1,500 employees. Right before the forcible firing of the 165 workers in question, the company completed the early retirement of 1,733 workers, already exceeding the initial target.
At a press conference on January 19, asked about the massive dismissal, Inamori said, “I feel very sorry. I would like to sincerely negotiate with them.”
Inamori had never sat at a labor-management negotiation table before carrying out the dismissal. 146 out of the 165 pilots and flight attendants filed a lawsuit with the Tokyo District Court seeking nullification of their dismissals.
