SAS has introduced a range of measures aimed at protecting the health of passengers and crew. The most striking measure is that SAS passengers will be required to wear a face mask between May 18 and August 31. The requirement applies to all passengers over the age of six and lasts from boarding to disembarkation on all SAS flights. People who are ill or experiencing symptoms of infection will be denied boarding. Despite the new measures, the airline claims that an “extremely small” number of infections can be traced to air travel. “The measures aimed to prevent the spread of coronavirus together with clean and dry air onboard makes flying a safe means of transportation. Many people in Scandinavia are completely dependent on SAS and air travel. They can rest assured we are taking all aspects concerning health and safety extremely seriously,” said Mattias Hedrén, SAS VP of safety and security. Face masks will not be provided by the airline. The airline advises that passengers should ensure they have enough masks for their entire trip, as many countries require such masks to be worn on public transport. SAS has also introduced more measures aimed at reducing the risk of infection and increasing confidence in flying. <br/>
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A United non-union employee filed a class action lawsuit on Wednesday alleging that a requirement that management and administration employees take 20 unpaid days off breaches the terms of federal payroll aid. United is among the US airlines that have accepted government payroll support, which is conditional on the companies not cutting jobs or pay rates before Sept. 30 as the sector weathers a sharp downturn in travel demand due to the coronavirus pandemic. According to the lawsuit, two weeks after United signed the agreement to receive paycheck protection funds, it told domestic management and administration employees that they would be required to take 20 unpaid days off, between May 16 and Sept. 30. "United's breach harms the agreement's intended beneficiaries: United employees," Kenneth England, who works as a shift manager for United at Chicago O'Hare International Airport, said in the complaint. The lawsuit, filed in the Northern District of Illinois, said United employees face a substantial reduction in pay as a result of the policy. "This lawsuit is without merit, as we continue to employ 100% of our workforce," United said.<br/>
A union representing catering workers wants to shut down a United facility in New Jersey, saying that more than 40 workers have contracted the new coronavirus and four have died. Before the virus outbreak caused United to drastically cut flights, about 1,000 people at the facility at Newark Liberty International Airport worked for United, preparing food and drinks and removing garbage from planes. Because of United's drastic cuts in flying — it is operating only about 10% of its normal flights in May — only about 100 people currently work in the facility, according to the union, Unite Here. The union and workers acknowledged that they aren't sure how they contracted the virus, although some believe it happened at work. United did not dispute the union's numbers about illnesses and deaths. The kitchen is located just outside New York City, in the heart of the worst COVID-19 outbreak in the United States. Workers said conditions including the supply of face masks and gloves have improved since the early days of the virus outbreak in March. United said it has complied with many requests made by a worker-safety committee at the kitchen. Airline spokeswoman Rachael Rivas said that since mid-March, the facility has been disinfected daily, with some common areas cleaned every two hours. She said workers are tested for fever, and there are social-distancing rules. <br/>
Administrators at state-owned SAA will not sell assets for an interim period without involving the government, a memorandum signed by one of the administrators and the public enterprises ministry showed. The memorandum also said the administrators and the ministry had agreed that the objective of SAA’s bankruptcy protection process was to have a restructured SAA or a new company with no reliance on public finances. A public enterprises ministry spokesman confirmed the memorandum was an authentic document. SAA’s administrators, appointed in December to try to rescue the firm, have said previously that a wind-down or liquidation of the loss-making airline were likely outcomes.<br/>
THAI needs to come up with a better plan to solve its financial problems, including dealing with its massive Bt240b debt which might lead to its bankruptcy, a senior official said. Chayatan Phromsorn, the deputy director of the Office of Transport and Traffic Policy and Planning (OTP), said that Thai Airways’ plan for a turnaround had no clear direction and too many risks in it. The government also called for an action plan with clarity, which was required for the survival of the airline. The OTP is expected to reveal a recovery plan for THAI this week, which will show the new direction for the national airline. Transport Minister Saksayam Chidchob has tasked OTP with studying the effects of the Covid-19 crisis and thoroughly make a plan for the expense and public debt management.<br/>