HELP US REACH 1 MILLION SIGNATURES DEMANDING TRANSPARENCY ABOUT THE DIMISSAL OF 165 JAPAN AIRLINES WORKERS.

Tens of thousands of people have already signed this petition in Japan. Join them and add your voice.

You do not have to work in the airline industry. You do not have to be Japanese.

You simply have to believe that people have the right to know the truth—especially when a government commission has ordered their former employer to provide the information.

165 VETERAN WORKERS LOST THEIR JOBS MORE THAN 15 YEARS AGO. THEY ARE STILL WAITING FOR ANSWERS.

December 31, 2010—NEW YEAR'S EVE

On one of the most important family holidays of the year in Japan, Japan Airlines (JAL) dismissed 165 workers: 81 pilots and 84 flight attendants.

Many had spent decades building their careers at JAL. They were pilots and flight attendants in their late 40s and 50s. These were not young people just beginning their careers.

For pilots in particular, this was especially shocking: becoming a qualified airline pilot requires years of specialized training and experience, making the loss of an established pilot career especially difficult to replace.

Moreover, Japanese companies' fiscal year ends on March 31, so firing these workers on December 31—three months before the end of the fiscal year and on New Year’s Eve—was an exceptionally harsh and cruel way to end the careers of people who had devoted decades to the company.

They were experienced workers approaching the later stages of their working lives.

Japan's standard retirement age is 65. Being forced out in one's late 40s or 50s could mean losing not only financial security, but also the opportunity to find a job elsewhere, ending one's life-long career.

In Japan's employment culture, staying at one company until retirement was considered the norm. Being dismissed after decades of dedicated service was unthinkable.

Not only was the firing of JAL workers shocking, they were told this on New Year's Eve, when families across Japan were celebrating to welcome the New Year together.

Why such cruelty and heartlessness?

THEN CAME A TWIST.

Imagine being told:

“Your position is no longer needed.”

And then seeing your former employer continue hiring new, younger people for the same positions soon afterward—workers who, by definition, would have had far less experience than the people who had just been dismissed.

From 2012 onward, JAL hired more than 700 pilots and over 7,500 flight attendants, while none of the 165 dismissed workers was returned to their former position. That raises an obvious question about whether valuable experience was being lost, and whether that could have implications for safety.

So ask yourself:

If the fired workers' positions were no longer needed, why did JAL continue hiring large numbers of less experienced people in the same occupations?

The dismissed workers have been asking for the staffing information that could help answer that question.

WHY ARE THEY STILL FIGHTING AFTER 15 YEARS?

You might wonder "Why don't they just let go and move on?"

But this is not simply about refusing to move on. 

There is an important difference that many people outside Japan may not know.

In many countries, especially the United States, people are used to companies firing people without an explanation.

Japan is different. Legally a company cannot simply fire a worker because management wants to. There must be a legitimate reason for the dismissal.

That is why the staffing information that JAL has refused to disclose is so important.

That information could answer a very simple question: Did JAL really need to fire these 165 workers?

If the staffing information shows that JAL did not need to fire them, then their dismissals may have been unfair.

And if the dismissals were unfair, JAL would be responsible for the years of wages, pensions, and retirement benefits these workers lost.

JAL REFUSES TO ANSWER

Did JAL really need to fire them?

The fired workers have been demanding an answer for 15 years because JAL has refused to answer this one basic question.

JAL said the dismissals were necessary because the company needed to reduce its workforce. 

But records show that JAL had already met—and in fact exceeded—its workforce-reduction target before these 165 workers were fired.

So the question is simple:

If JAL had already reduced its workforce enough, why did these 165 people still have to be fired? Especially in such a cruel manner? 

All of the dismissed workers happened to be union members. Could this have been the reason behind the firing?

A NEW DEVELOPMENT IN 2026

On January 15, 2026, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Labor Commission ordered JAL to provide clear, specific answers—with supporting evidence—about its staffing information following the dismissals.

JAL has still not provided the requested information.

WHY SHOULD YOU CARE? 

Again, you don't need to work for an airline. You don't need to be Japanese or live in Japan. You don't need to support or oppose labor disputes or unions.

Just imagine if this happened to you.

You spend decades building a career. Your employer tells you that your job is no longer needed. You are pushed out at an age when starting over is extremely difficult. You lose years of income and the opportunity to continue building your retirement security for yourself and your family. Then you see the company continue hiring younger people in the same positions, but with less experience, which could even lead to safety issues.

Wouldn't you want an explanation?

Of course you would.

And if a government commission orders the company to provide information about what happened, shouldn't the company comply?

This is about a basic principle:

Dismissed workers deserve answers. Companies should be held accountable. Official orders should be respected.

JAL IS MORE THAN JUST ANOTHER COMPANY.

Japan Airlines has long been one of the most recognizable faces of Japan to people around the world.

Millions of international passengers know JAL as a symbol of Japanese service, hospitality, and safety.

That makes transparency and accountability especially important.

What kind of message does JAL send out to the world when it refuses to resolve a dispute involving 165 highly experienced veteran workers for more than 15 years—and continues to withhold information requested by a government commission?

A company whose reputation is built on trust and safety should be willing to demonstrate that responsibility through transparency.

HELP US REACH 1 MILLION SIGNATURES.

We are asking Japan Airlines to:

• Comply with the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Labor Commission's January 15, 2026 order.

• Disclose the staffing information requested by the dismissed workers.

• Be transparent about the decisions surrounding the 2010 dismissals.

Please sign—and spread the word.

One person can be ignored. One million people are much harder to ignore.