An air steward with a local airline who wanted to be identified as Wan said he was apprehensive about travel bans being lifted because the Covid-19 virus, particularly the Omicron variant, remained pervasive.
“I am worried because I have to think not only about the passengers but also me and my family,” Wan, who has been in the line for more than two decades, told FMT.
“I will continue to observe the airline SOPs and mask up even though some places don’t require us to. I am not ready to unmask just yet.”
When the pandemic struck in 2020, Wan was forced to take on jobs he was unfamiliar with just to make ends meet after his salary was cut by up to 50% as most flights were grounded.
He equipped himself with some culinary skills and became a part-time cook, a profession he is not ready to give up despite being able to return to his full-time job.
“The border reopening isn’t a guarantee that we will be flying a lot,” he said. “Until things return to how they used to be before the pandemic, I will cook when I can.”
Pauline Lee, the manager of Simply Enak Food Tours, said she was eager to go back to coordinating food tours for tourists around Penang, Ipoh, and Kuala Lumpur, but added that the experience would be different compared to pre-pandemic times.
And although business has begun to pick up again for the company, some of her team members who left during the lockdowns are playing it safe and sticking to their current jobs.
Lee said she was fortunate that she was financially stable when her business had to close during the lockdowns, but admitted that she could not say the same for her former colleagues.
“My partner had to return to a corporate job and the guides whom I had to let go took up odd jobs as waitresses or Grab delivery drivers to earn a living,” she said.
When she closed her business during the lockdowns, she decided to do some research and update her tour itinerary since some restaurants or street vendors might no longer be operating after the pandemic.
The only challenge she expects would be managing a smaller team to handle bigger groups.
“I think we might just need to accept this as we transition to the endemic phase,” she said.
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