‘Boycott Japan’ move forces Eastar Jet to initiate unpaid leave

Eastar Jet will receive applications from employees for unpaid leave as the “Boycott Japan” movement and the grounding of its two Boeing 737 Max 8 jets have taken a toll on the airline’s finances.

From October to December, 500 Eastar Jet flight attendants will receive up to one month of unpaid leave.

“There has been a surplus in flight attendants as the Boycott Japan movement and the grounding of the two Max 8 planes have been prolonged,” an Eastar Jet official said. “We initiated the unpaid leave option in the past during the MERS outbreak. Employees who go on leave will not face disadvantages.”

Currently the airline has 22 planes, but is only able to operate 20 of them as the two Boeing 737 Max 8 planes have been grounded for over six months since March 13, following two deadly crashes of the same type of aircraft in Indonesia and Ethiopia. The accidents have caused airlines and governments worldwide to ground the planes as Boeing has yet to find the exact cause.

Eastar brought in the jets on Dec. 21 and operated them on both international and domestic routes until the ban was issued.

The drastic drop in Korean travelers to Japan has also taken a major toll on the airline as over 40 percent of the carrier’s international flights were to the neighboring country. Koreans have been avoiding traveling to Japan since July amid trade and historic disputes between the two nations.

To cope with the situation, the airline will temporarily halt operations between Incheon and three Japanese destinations — Okinawa, Sapporo and Kagoshima — from Dec. 1 to next March.

“The planes that were used for the three Japanese cities will be diverted to cities in China and Taiwan,” the official said.