Gender, Desire and Linguistic Capital in International Tourism

1. Gender, Desire and Linguistic Capital in International Tourism Kimie Takahashi Macquarie University, Australia kimie.takahashi@mq.edu.au

2. TV series, TBS, sponsored by JAL (1983) Average rating – 20% Chiaki Trainee stewardess Romance with her instructor Teamwork and friendship Episode 10 Chiaki’s limited English proficiency as a barrier to become a flight attendant “Stewardess Story” 1980s

3. Flight attendants • Gendered occupation • Language/bilingualism as a commodity (Heller, 2003) • The discourse of English as a tool of emancipation for Japanese women (Kelsky, 2001; Piller & Takahashi, 2006)

4. Aims • To understand the role of language proficiency and identities in employment, job satisfaction and career mobility? • To identify linguistic and workplace practices and discourses that underlie their experience of social inclusion/exclusion

5. “The role of multilingual practices and language learning in the Australian tourism industry” • Multisite ethnography • Funded by a MQRDG Grant (2007 -2009) • Directed by Ingrid Piller

6. Data • Macro data • Websites • Advertisements • Micro data • Semi-structured interviews & field notes • Dec 2008 - Jan 2009 • Japanese flight attendants working for an Australian airline

7. Corporate Identity An “Australian”, “low cost” airline that provides the best of Australian and “Asian hospitality”

8. “Our People” Identity as a low cost airlineFlight attendants:Aus & Asian hospitalityCompany responsibility “We believe in fostering a culture that is focused on our customers - ensuring we deliver thelowest faresand provide a travel experience that is refreshing and enjoyable, alongside our commitment toall day every daylow faresboth to our passengers and our staff. [Company name] staffs are recruited with an attitude and ability to deliver excellent customer service with an understanding that to deliver on our promise -All day, every day, low fares- we must always focus onkeeping our costs to a minimum. That means working smarter and always looking for ways to improve [company name] systems and processes. We have a great team of trained professionals. Our pilots are first class. We have experienced ground crew. Andour flight attendants arewarm, friendly and extremely attentive. Together they bringthe best of Australian and Asian hospitality, ensuring that every flight is enjoyable from start to finish. Ultimately, if [company name] customers are to have a satisfying travel experience,our people must enjoy their work. [Company name] iscommitted tosustaining a workplace whereour people are proud to be recognised as being a member of the team” (From the company website)

9. Three National Groups of Flight Attendants

10. Participants: Four Japanese FAs

11. “It’s the easiest job ever!” Juri:…it’s the easiest job ever @@@…there is absolutely nothing you have to think about after you finish your flight!... • The company’s ‘slack’ service practices • Comparison to Japanese airlines • Egalitarian workplace

12. But, not so stress-free….. • Australian customers’ response to ‘Asian hospitality’ • The ‘English Only’ Policy at work

13. 1. Australian customers’ response to ‘Asian hospitality’ Eri: …if there are too many Thai and Japanese flight attendants on a flight to Bali, they aren’t happy like, “why so many foreigners on an Australian airline?”…I know some flight attendants are asked “why are you working on an Australian airline if you can’t speak English!?”…

14. 1. Australian customers’ response to ‘Asian hospitality’ • Flight assignments • Less Asian flight attendants assigned to some international flights (i.e. Hawaii & Bali) • Seen as a corporate strategy to maintain a white, English speaking identity of the airline • Strong sense of unfairness and exclusion

15. 2. The ‘English Only’ Policy at work • Required to speak only English at work unless servicing Japanese customers • Reporting of the ‘violation’ by Australian co-workers Ryuko: Some Japanese girls speak to me in Japanese, so I speak back in Japanese….but then, I’m being watched by Aussies… and they tell me later that I shouldn’t be speaking Japanese…the managers always say, “Speak English when you are wearing the uniform because our customers think you are representing our company”… • Emotional stress • being reported affects reputation as a team worker, performance review and promotion prospect

16. Summary “Dream job” and “easiest job ever”, yet: • Bilingual Japanese as ‘disposable’ • Low job satisfaction and sense of belonging • Mistrust and tension at work

17. Thank you Kimie Takahashi Macquarie University, Australia

18. 3. Promotional prospect Linguistic & racial identity as constraints Fumie:…I’m not a native speaker of English…so, for example, if customers complain to an Australian staff and ask to speak to her manager and if I show up as a manager, then, they would definitely react negatively and question my authority, like, how can we trust her ability to handle things? She is a non-native speaker of English…