They will go on no-pay leave as well; salary cut for management too
By
Yang Huiwen
PILOTS at Singapore Airlines (SIA) have agreed to take no-pay leave as well as a pay cut from July 1, the latest in a string of cost-cutting measures as the global airline industry takes a battering.
The carrier also said its management staff and board of directors have agreed to a pay cut of at least 10 per cent, which, all up, will help SIA save about $21 million in costs this financial year.
MOVE MADE TO SAVE JOBS
'We reached this agreement with two objectives - to help the company remain profitable and to save jobs.'
An agreement between SIA and the Air Line Pilots Association-Singapore (Alpa-S) was finally signed on Thursday after months of tough negotiations.
Under the agreement, the pilots - more than 1,800 of them - will take one day of no-pay leave each month and a cut of 65 per cent of one day's pay a month, pro-rated from their monthly basic salary, SIA said in a statement yesterday.
The official agreement comes more than a month after an interim deal was reached, where its pilots agreed to take one day of compulsory leave a month.
'We reached this agreement with two objectives - to help the company remain profitable and to save jobs,' said Captain P. James, Alpa-S president.
Said SIA: 'The terms of the agreement with Alpa-S were determined by the surplus in pilot resources arising from the reduced flight schedules,' as the airline had cut back flights following the sharp fall in demand for air travel.
It earlier announced plans to decommission 16 aircraft and operate fewer flights by March next year.
From next month, all SIA management staff will take a pay cut of at least 10 per cent, while its chief executive Chew Choon Seng will have a pay cut of 20 per cent.
SIA was unable to say at press time how many management staff will be affected by the slash in wages.
Read the full story in Saturday's edition of The Straits Times.
