AirAsia boss faces criticism for posting half-naked massage photo ‘during Zoom meeting’

Photo shows AirAsia co-founder shirtless with a masked-up masseuse kneading his shoulders as he addresses virtual meeting

AirAsia boss Tony Fernandes sparked outrage after posting a half-naked photo of himself while getting a massage during a Zoom meeting (LinkedIn)

AirAsia co-founder Tony Fernandes sparked a heated debate on social media after he posted a half-naked photo of himself while getting a massage during a virtual office meeting.

On 16 October, Mr Fernandes posted the photo on his LinkedIn page and in the caption, he wrote: “Was a stressful week and Veranita Yosephine suggested a massage. Got to love Indonesia and AirAsia culture that I Can [sic] have a massage and do a management meeting.”

Ms Yosephine is the CEO of AirAsia Indonesia.

The post went viral and received several comments from observers with many calling the 59-year-old’s behaviour “inappropriate”.

The photo showed him without a shirt and a masked-up masseuse kneading his shoulders while he addressed a virtual meeting.

One user commented: “You could have wrapped up the meeting and then had your massage. I don’t think in a civilised culture this seems appropriate.”

Another said:  “I don’t think the women in your company would feel comfortable or safe in this context, and given you’re the boss, they likely won’t challenge you or say anything. Please for their sake, listen to the comments you’ve deleted on this post. You are clearly a smart leader that cares about culture but this isn’t the way to create a supportive, safe one.”

On Wednesday morning, when The Independent checked his LinkedIn profile, the viral post had disappeared. However, its screenshots were still doing the rounds on social media.

On the original post, one user had commented: “A grown man, who is the chief executive of a publicly listed company, conducts a management meeting with his shirt off as he gets a massage. Remove ‘who is the chief executive of a publicly listed company’, and it is still inappropriate.”

“I’m going to assume that this meeting took place long after the workday was over and most of the office was empty (except a few C-level), but at least put on a shirt for the photo,” another person commented.

“I took my shirt off during a management meeting and got fired,” another mocked.

“He should be setting an example of good work ethics and culture, not flaunting his body and privilege,” another user added.

“Some CEOs need to stay off LinkedIn,” wrote another.

But a few users also responded positively to the post. One said: “Love this boss!”

Another said: “My favourite post on LinkedIn. Looking forward to you posting more of your day-to-day office life.”

But the criticism outweighed the positive comments. “Tony when you said Air Asia had an open culture I didn’t expect it to be THIS open…” said a LinkedIn user.