Qatar Airways rebuffs claim that staff need permission to marry

Qatar Airways chief Akbar al-Baker has said claims that his airline’s flight attendants are sacked if they get married are a “load of bull****,” in remarks to CNN on Tuesday.

Baker told the news network that claims, which were first made by the International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF) back in 2013, were untrue and his company's employment practices were "very progressive".

Asked if staff are fired when they get married, Baker said: "That is not true. That is a load of bull****."

Baker staunchly defended his company, saying that staff have "all the rights they require".

"These rumors that are being circulated are not true," he added.

Recently, allegations from the ITF, an international federation of transport unions, have resurfaced after being picked up by the Washington Post newspaper.

The ITF claimed that the Doha-based airline requires female staff to "obtain prior permission from the company, in case you wish to change your marital status and get married.

“The [Qatar Airways] employee shall notify the employer in case of pregnancy from the date of her knowledge of its occurrence. The employer shall have the right to terminate the contract of employment from the date of notification of the pregnancy. Failure of employee to notify the employer or the concealment of the occurrence shall be considered a breach of contract,” an ITF statement read.

At the time, the ITF said Qatar Airways was committing "flagrant abuses" of worker rights, adding that the airline reserved the right to dismiss workers who were pregnant, as that was viewed as a breach of contract.

More than 19,000 people work for Qatar Airways.