SEOUL, June 3 — The brickbats came out for AirAsia Korea this week after the company announced that flight attendants would be chosen by a public online vote.

In a Facebook post, as part of its recruitment efforts, the low-cost carrier urged interested applicants to submit a one-minute introduction together with their best attempt at an in-flight announcement, South Korean newspaper Chosun Ilbo reported earlier this week.

The videos would then be posted to Naver, a popular web portal in South Korea, where the public can vote for their favourites.

Naturally, the knives came out on social media, with many criticising AirAsia Korea for purportedly putting physical appearance before professional qualifications.

According to a translation provided by Asian Correspondent, one of the comments on the Facebook post announcing the call for video submissions read:

“Are you kidding? It’s better to choose people who are safe and responsible rather than through popular vote.”

“There is already the sexist stereotype of ‘flight attendant = pretty slim women’, and adopting this approach only works to strengthen the existing sexist myth,” wrote another commenter, based on a second translation by the same news portal.

In their defence, an airline spokesman explained to Quartz that it had merely wanted to approach the hiring process in a unique way.

“The video audition is used only to identify applicants aligned with AirAsia’s corporate values,” the AirAsia spokesman was quoted as saying by Quartz.

“They will still have to fulfil strict criteria laid out in our existing cabin crew recruitment guidelines. On top of that, successful applicants must undergo a rigorous training process that covers all aspects of operational safety before they can serve. At no stage does AirAsia compromise on the safety and comfort of our guests and crew.”