KUALA LUMPUR: The Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) has been tasked with devising a standard operating procedure (SOP) for the hiring of flight or cabin crew which can be adopted by all airlines.
Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri Richard Riot Jaem said the decision was made during a meeting between the ministry's Human Resource Department, the DCA and carriers such as Malaysia Airlines, AirAsia and Malindo Air, on April 7.
Also in attendance was Deputy Transport Minister, Datuk Abdul Aziz Kaprawi.
"The meeting was held on April 7 to get Malindo Air's explanation on the procedures taken in interviews with potential flight crew or cabin crew members.
"As a result of the meeting, the DCA has been asked to draft an SOP on the hiring process, which can then be used by all airlines," Richard said in his winding-up speech on the motion of thanks on the royal address by Yang di-Pertuan Agong Sultan Muhammad V at the Dewan Negara, today.
Malindo Air had recently drawn flak over its grooming check procedures for walk-in interviews, which required female applicants to strip down to their bras.
The airline subsequently denied that applicants for cabin crew were asked to strip during walk-in interviews, held in March.
In a statement, it said that grooming checks were carried out during the interview to determine if an applicant has any visible marks, and the process was conducted privately by female supervisors.
Malindo Air stressed that it has adhered to its recruitment process regulations since its inception in 2013, reiterating that the checks are "standard procedure" that have been practised for four years.