MANILA (PNA) — Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri on Tuesday appealed for humanitarian consideration among airline pilots and crews, following their decision to abandon the country’s flag carrier in exchange for higher-paying jobs with foreign airlines.

Zubiri said that while he understands the predicament of the pilots, “they also have to give due consideration to the travelling public.”

“Both ways, my challenge is for the management and the pilots: that the management reconsider the demands of its employees and at the same time, for the pilots and crews to give due consideration to the benefits of the traveling public,” he said.

Zubiri added the on going dispute between PAL management and its pilots should serve as a wake up call, not only to the PAL management, but also to other airline companies and transport groups to ensure that their employees are well-treated and properly compensated.

“It’s always good to look into the demands of our labor groups. We should always remember that our workers are also human. They have needs that require attention from the management,” he said.

The senator also dismissed proposals to charge the concerned airline pilots following their protest action.

”Filing a case against these pilot employees will not help solve the dispute, but rather will only aggravate the decades-old labor issue of proper compensation and benefits,” he said.

Last Monday, senator Bong Revilla filed a Senate resolution urging the concerned Senate committees to conduct an inquiry, in aid of legislation, into the current dispute between the PAL management and its 25 pilots and crews.

Revilla said the PAL is a national symbol that must be protected, adding the cancellation of PAL flights is detrimental to the image of our country.