Coronavirus: Cathay Pacific makes vaccinations for Hong Kong crews a must, Britain labelled ‘very high-risk’ country
- City’s flagship airline sends staff a memo saying their future employment will be reviewed should they decline to take a Covid-19 jab
- Hong Kong once again classifies Britain as ‘very high-risk’ country for virus, with change coming into effect next week
Staff were informed on Thursday that the airline would accommodate those who could not take a jab in the short term but “review the future employment” of staff and assess if they could continue to be employed as aircrew.
Cathay currently has 90 per cent of its pilots and 65 per cent of cabin crew either vaccinated or booked for shots. The carrier employs about 3,100 pilots and roughly 8,750 cabin crew, with most based in Hong Kong.
The announcement came as the Hong Kong government once again classified Britain, which has been hit by a surge of Covid-19 cases driven by the more transmissible Delta variant, as a “very high-risk” country for the virus, moving it from the “high-risk” category. The change will come into effect on Monday.
Arrivals from “very high-risk” countries, dubbed group A2, will not qualify to have their quarantine period reduced even if they are fully vaccinated.