Cathay Pacific, a Hong Kong-based airline, ended up in a big PR crisis recently because two employees of the airline allegedly broke their home isolation Covid rules.
After a series of heated statements from both external parties and company officials, the entire situation culminated in criticism from the Hong-Kong government.
Company Response
Cathay Pacific’s chairman, Patrick Healy, released a video with a measured and graceful response to comments and criticisms that the company was receiving from the public.
The way that Healy handled the situation was notable, especially considering that it was happening during a time when everyone’s attention was on the company and what would happen next.
He accepted responsibility for the mistakes that the employees made, and apologized for any disruption that those employees may have caused; disruptions potentially including a new Covid-19 outbreak.
Healy also noted that the company was taking responsibility for the entire crew of the plane, stating that they would all be returning to Hong Kong on cargo-only flights, and clarified that such a flight didn’t go against government pandemic regulations.
Taking Charge
The company’s chairman made it clear that he and the company would accept responsibility and delivered the statement with elegance. The statement also separated the company from the behavior of the two employees.
While the employees were in the wrong to avoid home isolation after testing positive for the virus, the admission of guilt wasn’t connected to the airline itself being in the wrong too.
Healy also made it clear that the company would continue following all of the public health guidelines and regulations without compromising any of the responsibilities it has to employees and consumers.
Distance
Understanding situations such as this one requires having a lot of empathy toward the public, as well as an acknowledgment of the mistakes that employees might have made which put others at risk.
That’s precisely why it’s effective to single out the minority of people who broke the rules, and clearly state that any further rule-breaking wouldn’t be allowed, never has been, and that all the other employees have successfully followed the rules.
This type of statement tells the public that the company’s leadership doesn’t tolerate any sort of damage to its reputation from a small number of people.
The airline also tactfully didn’t make any sort of political comments about the ongoing pandemic and global crisis, avoiding turning the response into a political or social statement.
Instead of delving into the tricky politics that have surrounded the pandemic, with the statement, Healy managed to depoliticize the situation and said that the airline would be respecting any rules and regulations from the government.
This was also partially an expected statement because there is an anticipated investigation into the airline’s quarantine regulations, as well as into other employee conduct rules at the company.
Ronn Torossian is the CEO and founder of NY based PR firm 5W Public Relations. Torossian is also the founder of the Ronn Torossian Foundation, and a lifelong New Yorker.
