The Employee Experience of Finland-based Cabin Crew: Perspectives from the Covid-19 Pandemic
Pajunen, Sonja (2022)
Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2022052010897
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2022052010897
Tiivistelmä
The Covid-19 pandemic was the worst crisis in the history of the aviation industry. It impacted the industry widely leaving many aviation professionals unemployed or laid off. The new rules and regulations changed the traveling and the aviation industry, this also influenced on the work of the cabin crew.
The objective of this thesis was to investigate the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic for the employee experience of Finland-based cabin crew. What was done well and what could have been done differently in the organisations. What can be learned from this to manage the employee experience in the event of possible crises in the future.
The theoretical framework of this study was based on the theory of employee experience, focusing on expectation alignment.
The study was conducted by means of theme interview. Five cabin crew members that were based in Finland and have been working in the same position before and during the Covid-19 pandemic, were interviewed for this study. The research methodology in this study was qualitative.
The results indicated that based on the memories and experiences the interviewees had from the pre-pandemic time reflected against their current thoughts and experiences, the Covid-19 pandemic and its consequences had a negative impact on the employee experience. The interviewees were pleased the employers attempted to create a safe work environment and feeling of togetherness and support the employees in various ways. However, the interviewees desired more fairness and transparent and open communication during this unprecedented crisis. The insufficiency of these matters caused sense of being left out, violation of the feeling of appreciation and trust and made space for negative speech and rumours.
In sum, the role of the management building the employee experience is undoubted. The actions of the employer play a huge part in developing employee experience, thus acts considered negative can greatly violate the trust and the feeling of security and appreciation which leads to damaging the employee experience. Good level of organisational communication together with personal communication and feedback increase the feeling of being heard. The communication should be active and transparent, and the language should be clear and understandable to reduce the negative impacts of the crises for the employee experience.
The objective of this thesis was to investigate the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic for the employee experience of Finland-based cabin crew. What was done well and what could have been done differently in the organisations. What can be learned from this to manage the employee experience in the event of possible crises in the future.
The theoretical framework of this study was based on the theory of employee experience, focusing on expectation alignment.
The study was conducted by means of theme interview. Five cabin crew members that were based in Finland and have been working in the same position before and during the Covid-19 pandemic, were interviewed for this study. The research methodology in this study was qualitative.
The results indicated that based on the memories and experiences the interviewees had from the pre-pandemic time reflected against their current thoughts and experiences, the Covid-19 pandemic and its consequences had a negative impact on the employee experience. The interviewees were pleased the employers attempted to create a safe work environment and feeling of togetherness and support the employees in various ways. However, the interviewees desired more fairness and transparent and open communication during this unprecedented crisis. The insufficiency of these matters caused sense of being left out, violation of the feeling of appreciation and trust and made space for negative speech and rumours.
In sum, the role of the management building the employee experience is undoubted. The actions of the employer play a huge part in developing employee experience, thus acts considered negative can greatly violate the trust and the feeling of security and appreciation which leads to damaging the employee experience. Good level of organisational communication together with personal communication and feedback increase the feeling of being heard. The communication should be active and transparent, and the language should be clear and understandable to reduce the negative impacts of the crises for the employee experience.