PC Air, a new airline based out of Thailand is looking to fill its crew with transgender flight attendants. According to Reuters, the decision came after the airline received more than 100 applications for transgender employees. The airline ultimately hired four transgender flight attendants, along with 19 female and seven male.
Transgender people, popularly known as “katoeys” or “ladyboys” in Thailand, are higher profile in that country than most. “They are especially common in cosmetics shops or health stores, which almost always have a ladyboy shop assistant,” says Reuters.
The airline insists that transgendered employs have “feminine characters,” adhering to the same standards as their female counterparts. Says the airline’s president, Peter Chan,
For male flight attendants, if I don’t want to hire them, it’s because of their attitude or their characters, like the way they walk and smile. For female flight attendants, if they have no patience and their character does not qualify, we won’t hire them. For transsexuals, we can’t just spend 5 or 10 minutes with them, we have to spend the whole day with them to make sure they have feminine characters.
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