To those who represent, lead and serve the airline industry...

The Board of Governors
International Air Transport Association

800 Place Victoria
PO Box 113
Montreal - H4Z 1M1
Quebec - Canada
Phone: +1 514 874 0202
Fax: +1 514 874 9632

Madame , Monsieur

SUBJ: Letter of Protest on the Appointment of Dato Idris Jala to the IATA Board of Governors resulting from Gender Discriminating Practices by Malaysia Airlines

Having spent 7 ½ years in the airline industry, it is comforting to know that IATA stands proudly for her, ever so with the tagline and stand of ‘We represent, lead, and serve the airline industry’.

Audra Denise Atkinson, was a Female Flight attendant, who served 14 years with Malaysia Airlines, and rose from the ranks of Flight Stewardess to Chief Stewardess.

In her years in Malaysia Airlines, she was handpicked (presumably due to her good records) to serve in the former Prime Minster’s charter flights abroad, seen to most crew as a privilege. She received numerous commendation letters, and does not have a single disciplinary problem. In 2003, she was terminated, due to her informing the management of Malaysia Airlines of her pregnancy for a third time.

I am writing in my capacity as her husband. I myself was a former flight attendant with MAS. Evidently, with her termination, Malaysia Airlines has chosen to follow archaic gender discriminating policies of yesteryears!

Although the Malaysian Employment act permits female employees in this country to have up to 5 children, and yet enjoy maternity benefits, it seems, Malaysia Airlines through its collective agreement with its Union states otherwise. It will be interesting to note how many of their 5000 strong flight attendants who may be married yet chose to abort pregnancy to save their jobs, if at all.

With the termination, came three years of tremendous stress, and unnecessary actions. My expose on this through my blog, www.muststopthis.blogspot.com, further caused Malaysia Airlines discomfort, and sometime in March, Malaysia Airlines, through it’s lawyers, Shearn Delamore (Malaysia) complained to the Industrial court of my blogging, and I was issued an order to stop dissemination of this information. Failure to do so may result in me being charged in contempt.

I have tried very hard to rely on Malaysia’s court system to address this issue of which her case will be mentioned on the 5^th of September 2007. I am not certain now, about this, but having been exposed to various high profile news coverage on the near miraculous recovery of MAS, particularly through the leadership of Datuk Idris Jala, I am adamant now to first inform you, the key players in the airline industry, as well as to embark on a quest to inform all concerned of Malaysia Airlines decision to continue its gender discriminating policies. By pursuing and seeking Datuk Idris Jala’s views will also mean support of his policies.

Idris Jala may have reduced Malaysia Airline’s losses, but his continuance of not reinstating Chief Stewardess Audra Denise Atkinson further speaks for his stance in gender discrimination policies of Malaysia Airlines. In a recent press release highlighting the importance of human resources, his continuance in maintaining this archaic policy is not reflective of his views.

MAS also practices a different age limit in relation to the retirement age of its female flight attendants.

The world over is providing opportunities for women, yet in MAS, its clearly the opposite. IATA in wanting to know his secret of turning around an ailing airline, should also note this practice of gender discrimination by Malaysia Airlines.

Perhaps, it will be appropriate for IATA to question the need of such practice in a fast changing worldwide environment of equal opportunities for all.
There is absolutely no valid reason to take away a persons job on the grounds of pregnancy. None at all.

Would IATA be interested to also note that MAS did in fact convince the Industrial relations Department of Malaysia to drop the case, as MAS was in the process of offering Audra a job? However, the offer never did come. Giving her instead false hope.

My very reason to write to you, the Board of Governors of IATA, is for you to stand up, represent, and lead, to fight this Gender Discriminating policy that MAS practices, and most importantly speak for someone who is suffering in silence, on e of your own perhaps, and to pave the way to eliminate this severely lop sided aggravation on women.

After all, if all our mothers and sisters, and daughters are put out of a job due to pregnancy, what kind of a world would we have?

I plead with you to take this matter up for someone whose job and voice has been taken away.