Cathay employees warm to voluntary leave program

Cathay employees warm to voluntary leave program    Cathay Pacific Airways said Friday that 14 percent of its pilots and 85 percent of its ground staff have so far accepted voluntary leave as part of a global program to conserve cash.
   The program calls on employees to accept a one- to four-week leave, depending on seniority. The program began April 20.
   'The response has also been very encouraging in overseas offices, with the majority of countries already reporting consent rates of between 70 percent and 100 percent,' the airline said. 'Sister airline Dragonair has also reported a good response, with around 80 percent of ground staff and cabin crew responding positively and 55 percent of pilots giving their consent.
   The airline also said it will extend the deadline for giving consent to the leave scheme from April 30 to May 10. The voluntary leave program was one of many efforts undertaken by Cathay to offset heavy losses in recent months. Turnover fell 22.4 percent in the first quarter of 2009 as demand for cargo and passenger services plummeted.
   Cathay has reduced cargo capacity by 11 percent and parked two freighters.