Employees in some occupations have higher standards imposed on them than those imposed on the general population. Those higher standards are required because of the particular potential for harm associated with particular occupations. So  for example, we have bans on relationships between teachers and students and the application of insider trading laws to company directors.

Many workplaces have bans on alcohol use. For some occupations the ban should be inflexible and absolute given the potential for harm. These occupations should include anyone involved in airline operations.

The Police have revealed several cases of Air New Zealand employees being caught drink driving. These cases include a mechanic and a flight attendant caught on their way to work and a pilot caught four times. If someone has so little self control over their use of alcohol that they break our drink driving laws then they have no business being anywhere near an aeroplane.

Air New Zealand's attitude to these revelations is worrying. Instead of displaying a zero tolerance to drinking employees they try to shoot the messenger by expressing anger at the Police and by denying that there is a problem. One on duty employee with alcohol in their system is a problem. Several indicates a systemic failure.

The Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union has attacked the Police for releasing this vital information to Air New Zealand on the grounds that the employees are penalised twice. But that's too bad, the safety of thousands of people is at stake and airline employees are certainly not the only occupational group that can rightly face both criminal and professional consequences for the one act.

If Air Zealand fails to deal with this issue properly we won't have to worry about terrorists seizing control of planes.