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food / travel

Japanese Airline Instructs Crews To Be Unfriendly And Unhelpful

THE MAINICHI / KYODO (Japan)

TOKYO - Japan's low cost carrier Skymark Airlines has found a new and unusual way to cut costs. Since May, passengers have been advised not to complain or to ask for help on board, and crew members have been told not to be helpful or nice.

The airline hopes to save money by "simplifying services." A brochure placed in the airplanes' seat pockets explains to the passengers that they aren't allowed to complain while on the plane – if they have an issue, they can call customer service after the flight has landed. Skymark Airlines also doesn't ask its crew "to use polite words' when speaking to the passengers and tells them not to help load bags into the overhead bins, The Mainichi reports.

In a country where politeness and protocol are the pillars of society, a way of life, Skymark's idea for cost cutting is quite a revolution. Some are worried this might put a dent into Japanese airlines' pristine reputation.

Photo from Geofrog

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Society

Influencer Union? The Next Labor Rights Battle May Be For Social Media Creators

With the end of the Hollywood writers and actors strikes, the creator economy is the next frontier for organized labor.

​photograph of a smartphone on a selfie stick

Smartphone on a selfie stick

Steve Gale/Unsplash
David Craig and Stuart Cunningham

Hollywood writers and actors recently proved that they could go toe-to-toe with powerful media conglomerates. After going on strike in the summer of 2023, they secured better pay, more transparency from streaming services and safeguards from having their work exploited or replaced by artificial intelligence.

But the future of entertainment extends well beyond Hollywood. Social media creators – otherwise known as influencers, YouTubers, TikTokers, vloggers and live streamers – entertain and inform a vast portion of the planet.

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For the past decade, we’ve mapped the contours and dimensions of the global social media entertainment industry. Unlike their Hollywood counterparts, these creators struggle to be seen as entertainers worthy of basic labor protections.

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