Summary of the Key Points
This article, published on a civil aviation industry public account, compares the experiences of civil aviation flight attendants and medical staff, two seemingly unrelated frontline service groups, highlighting a common issue in the public service sector: the complaint mechanism, which is intended to oversee service quality, has been completely distorted by a focus on customer satisfaction. A large number of absurd and even malicious complaints, with no cost to the complainant, force frontline workers to apologize and take the blame even when they are completely innocent. This consumes a great deal of their energy and severely undermines their dignity. The article also discusses the civil aviation industry's efforts to address this issue over the past two years, points out potential solutions, and notes that reforms in fields like healthcare are even more challenging. It concludes by calling on all frontline workers not to sacrifice their dignity in order to maintain peace and stability in their jobs.
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Detailed Analysis
1. The commonality of absurd complaints: "Making a fuss always pays off" has become an established shortcut to getting benefits
Many people have figured out the unspoken rules of complaining: complaints are cost-free, and the more aggressively you make them, the more extra benefits you can obtain, without needing to provide any justification. Almost every type of absurd complaint has a real-life counterpart. For example, in civil aviation, a flight attendant's hand may be scratched by a passenger's long nail, but they could still be accused of "unprofessional appearance" by a premium customer, resulting in the loss of 15 points that would normally take a year to earn. In hospitals, issues such as a strong medicine smell, a nurse walking too fast, or a patient from the next bed snoring can all lead to complaints against the staff. There are even online guides suggesting that whether on a plane or in a hospital, pretending to be angry and constantly mentioning complaints will make the other party more accommodating.
Under such rules, honest people end up being at a disadvantage, and it inevitably leads to a group of people who exploit service resources through petty behavior, forcing legitimate, rule-abiding consumers to bear the consequences.
2. The real problem is not the complaints themselves, but the "satisfaction-only" evaluation system
People often think that frontline workers fear complaints because they fear being scolded, but the real fear is the unreasonable evaluation criteria behind them. For instance, if you are a doctor or flight attendant and face a completely unfounded complaint, trying to prove your innocence can take days of time and effort, including reviewing records and dealing with follow-up calls. In contrast, simply saying "I'm sorry, it was my mistake" can resolve the issue in seconds without any further hassle. This makes it the most cost-effective choice for frontline workers.
An even more extreme example comes from a hospital in Anhui, where the requirement for excellence on Doctors' Day was "zero complaints within a year." Only one out of thousands of staff members dared to apply for the award, as it is practically impossible to achieve zero complaints when you interact with patients daily. Setting such a standard effectively excludes 99% of the hardworking staff and rewards those who rarely interact with patients.
3. Civil aviation has found a replicable solution: Screen complaints before assigning them to frontline staff
Civil aviation was one of the first industries to suffer from this problem and has developed an effective approach that can be easily applied to other public services. Previously, the volume of complaints and passenger satisfaction rates were strict KPIs that overwhelmed frontline staff. In 2024, new regulations were introduced: all cabin complaints are first reviewed by management, which follows the principle of "whoever makes the claim must provide evidence." If a passenger accuses a flight attendant of wrongdoing, they must provide proof. This has led to a significant decrease in complaints at East China Airlines. The reason is not that passengers have suddenly become more understanding; rather, most of the absurd complaints are filtered out before reaching the frontline.
The new evaluation system in civil aviation now accounts for only 10% of the overall score and only includes complaints that have been verified as valid. It is also linked to the airline's annual passenger volume, so a few malicious complaints do not affect the airline's ability to apply for new routes or access resources. This approach applies to hospitals as well: complaints are first verified by dedicated personnel, and those that are clearly baseless (such as snoring from the next bed or complaints about nurses walking too fast) are simply dismissed without requiring doctors to write lengthy explanations.
4. Reforms in healthcare are more difficult because many complaints are not the doctors' fault
Compared to civil aviation, the situation for medical staff is even more challenging, as many complaints are not related to service quality. The boundaries of medical services are clear: if a passenger's request for a higher class is not allowed, it can be directly refused, and both parties will not meet again after the flight. However, doctors deal with real patients, and many illnesses are currently incurable. Patients who spend a lot of money on treatment but still suffer cannot find relief, leading them to blame the doctors. Shifting this blame onto doctors does not solve the problem and may even deter them from treating serious cases, forcing them to focus on simpler cases, which harms the general public.
5. The ultimate goal of reform is simple: to allow people who rely on their labor to leave their jobs with dignity
There is concern that supporting frontline workers might lead to them being perfunctory or rude to passengers. However, this is unnecessary. Reasonable complaints that are verified as valid should be addressed, and accountability should be pursued. The goal is not to "allow complaints" but to eliminate the unreasonable rule that always punishes frontline staff regardless of the truth. While the civil aviation reforms have not yet fully been implemented in all hospitals, the direction is clear: we want everyone who relies on their labor to be able to speak up about unreasonable demands without being punished for things they haven't done and to leave their jobs with pride and dignity.