Malaysian airlines ensure equal opportunity for women in aviation sector

Malaysia Aviation Group has committed to treating all women and men fairly at work. — Filepic

Malaysia Aviation Group (MAG) has committed to further promote education, training and professional development for women in the industry.

The parent company of Malaysia Airlines and Firefly recently signed the CEO Statement for the Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs) with the support of the European Union-funded WeEmpowerAsia programme of UN Women.

Malaysia Airlines group chief executive officer Captain Izham Ismail said the company is committed to ensuring equal opportunity for its workforce.

“At MAG, we celebrate diversity and drive equality in gender, race, religion and age at all times. The management team and I are committed to ensuring that every woman and man will have equal opportunity to succeed in MAG based on merit,” he said in a statement.

The WEPs are a set of principles offering guidance to businesses on promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment in the workplace and community at large.

By signing the WEPs, the aviation group commits to advancing gender equality through several initiatives. These include treating all women and men fairly at work, ensuring the well-being of all workers, and promoting equality through community initiatives and advocacy.

UN Women regional director (Asia and Pacific) Mohammad Naciri said the private sector has an important role to play in advocating for gender equality.

“We look at the private sector as partners in closing gender gaps in the world of work and advance the sustainable development goals. We know that companies which implement these principles offer great potential for advancing gender equality,” he said.

Earlier this year, MAG joined the 25by2025 initiative by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) to champion gender balance and create further career opportunities for women in the aviation industry.

Being more equal

Gender equality is something that is pursued by many airlines at large in recent years. For instance, many major airlines are now using gender-neutral greetings.

British Airways has advised pilots and cabin crew to to drop “ladies and gentlemen” announcements in a drive to promote “diversity”, The Telegraph recently reported.

“We celebrate diversity and inclusion and we’re committed to ensuring that all our customers feel welcome when traveling with us,” said a British Airways spokesperson.

The move by British Airways is in the wake of similar switches to gender-neutral plane greetings made by other airlines such as Lufthansa, EasyJet and Air Canada.

“Diversity and equality are core values for our company and our corporate culture. From now on, we want to express this attitude in our language as well – and show that diversity is not just a phrase, but a lived reality,” said Lufthansa in a statement.

“We have not banned addressing our guests as ‘Dear Sir or Madam’ – our aim is to welcome everyone on board on an equal basis,” Lufthansa added.

The move towards gender-neutral language is a positive step for the traditionally male-dominated aviation industry, said experts.

Earlier, the Washington Post reported that the Federal Aviation Administration in the United States recommend that aviation terminology such as “airman” and “unmanned” should be changed to a more gender-neutral alternatives.