SIA pressed to find fair play in flighty affair with Lion City

ONE AFTERNOON IN 1952 a delegation of postal workers approached a young Lee Kuan Yew to ask for his help in presenting their case for a salary revision. Mr Lee, then working as a lawyer at Laycock & Ong, agreed to take the workers' case, and did so without legal fees. The 500 postmen and telegraph messengers negotiated for months with government officials, but without success. They walked off the job in what was the first strike in more than four years. Aided by a deft media campaign, Mr Lee's counsel and a steely collective resolve, the union carried the day. The stoppage rattled the colonial administration, according to Mr Lee's memoirs, and set the stage for a heightened industrial and political challenge in the years ahead. These days, industrial action of any sort is extremely rare in the city-state, which has honed its reputation for peaceful labour relations to help court international investment. The bulk of the unions are affiliated with the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC), which is headed by a cabinet minister. But talk of industrial unrest flared again this week, and threatens to tarnish the reputation of national flag carrier Singapore Airlines (SIA). Pilots at the company, which is partly held by Temasek Holdings - the finance ministry's investment arm - are angry about changes to their working conditions. The dispute is interesting both for its specifics, and also for what it shows about how such conflicts are resolved. Leaders of the authoritarian Lion City do not like the country to be seen as a venue for any form of unrest, however mild. The impasse at SIA was a 'disappointing development', Transport Minister Yeo Cheow Tong said. 'If the pilots take industrial action, it will have an impact on the reputation of SIA and, indirectly, have an impact on them as well,' Mr Yeo said. The minister raised the possibility the government may intervene through the Ministry of Manpower, which is working to mediate between the two sides. Intensive discussions were under way yesterday, ahead of a union vote on potential action today. The pilots' union is perturbed about where its members get to rest in between stints on the flight deck on long-haul trips. In addition to bunks for sleeping, common practice has been for seats to be reserved in business class for the pilots. The company appears to want them further back in economy. The issue has been raised because SIA wants to install new, bigger seats in its business class cabins, which fold down into extensive beds. Since the new arrangement may cut the number of spaces available in that section of the aircraft, SIA says that it is necessary to sell all the space, leaving no room for the pilots other than in economy. The pilots are adamant that this arrangement would violate a collective agreement struck in 1988, which they say entitles them to business-class seats or their equivalent. There is no talk of strike action yet, but if the talks fail pilots will be balloted on a motion to work-to-rule. Should that happen, it would be the first industrial dispute at the company since 1980. Back then, a rumpus over salaries and benefits was defused by the personal intervention of Mr Lee, who was then prime minister. The pilots are also up in arms about SIA's recent decision to sack two of the flight deck staff who were aboard the ill-fated airliner that attempted to take off from the wrong runway at Taiwan's Chiang Kai-shek International Airport two years ago. The crash left dozens dead. News of the wrangle has produced a mixed reaction from people in Singapore, with some saying that no quarter should be given by management to the cosy staff fraternity. 'Logic dictates that if economy-class seats are deemed suitable for paying customers, then they should not pose any problems for the Singapore Airlines' pilots,' one said in a letter to the local paper. A second critic struck a more aggressive tone, saying that servicemen could be used to break the union should it endorse action and staff were sacked. 'I am confident that Republic of Singapore Air Force pilots can come to the rescue and fly SIA's planes if the situation deteriorates and some pilots have to be shown the door,' he said. It is unlikely the affair is going to go that far. Although NTUC secretary-general Lim Boon Heng has said that the pilots' union is not affiliated with his organisation, the government has been sending clear signals that it does not want the dispute to escalate. Reports of a work-to-rule at SIA and any consequent disruption to flight schedules would be deemed damaging both to the company's reputation and, in a broader sense, to that of the country as well. 'The key to peace and harmony in society is a sense of fair play,' Mr Lee wrote in his account of 'winning over the unions'. One suspects that SIA and its flight staff will hammer out some form of compromise pretty smartly.