SIA ends MVC pay cuts for all S'pore-based staff
CAG will also restore wages for all staff - up to those in middle management - next month
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Singapore Airlines says it will continue to make the necessary investments in its people and the business to emerge stronger and fitter.
ST FILE PHOTO
Singapore Airlines (SIA) has reinstated the monthly variable component to the basic salary of all its Singapore-based staff since Aug 1, while Changi Airport Group (CAG) will restore wages for all its employees - up to those in middle management - next month.
The national carrier had implemented the pay cuts as part of staff measures to cut expenditures last March.
CAG introduced the base salary cuts in April last year.
In a statement yesterday, it said it will retain pay cuts of up to 30 per cent for senior management.
CAG added that the wage restoration is a recognition of the resilience demonstrated by its employees.
Separately, SIA said additional pay cuts for pilots remain in place, as per an agreement with the Air Line Pilots Association - Singapore union last year to mitigate further job losses for pilots.
SIA's senior management also continues to take additional pay cuts to basic salary - 15 per cent for senior vice-presidents, 20 per cent for executive vice-presidents and 25 per cent for the chief executive.
Board members will continue taking a 30 per cent cut in fees in solidarity with the management, the national carrier noted.
A staff circular issued by SIA chief executive officer Goh Choon Phong on Wednesday, seen by The Straits Times, stated that the ending of the full monthly variable component (MVC) cut of basic salary for Singapore-based staff is applicable for the rest of the financial year, from this month to March next year.
Additional pay cuts for managers up to divisional vice-presidents will also cease, he said.
Mr Goh noted in the circular that SIA had announced last month a reduction in the MVC wage cuts from 10 per cent to 5 per cent as per its collective agreements, for the August to October period.
This applied to Singapore-based employees up to the level of divisional vice-president.
The cessation of some of the wage cuts from this month is in "recognition of the prolonged sacrifices" that staff have made, Mr Goh said.
"Many uncertainties remain ahead, and the competition will be stiff in the new normal.
"We must continue to maintain a tight lid on costs, while being nimble and agile to grab all revenue and growth opportunities in the market," he added.
SIA implemented a range of cost-cutting measures during the early stages of the pandemic last year, including renegotiating contracts with suppliers and deferring non-critical projects.
Its staff measures, including voluntary release schemes and no-pay leave, resulted in employee numbers dropping by 20 per cent compared with the pre-Covid-19 levels.
In its statement, SIA said that since its retrenchment exercise last year, it has experienced higher attrition among ground staff and cabin crew, with staff continuing to suffer a reduction in salary over the past 1½ years.
The group decided to cut around 4,300 positions across its carriers - SIA, SilkAir and Scoot - last September, a move that affected about 2,400 employees after accounting for measures such as a recruitment freeze and natural attrition.
The airline will continue to make the necessary investments in its people and the business to ensure that it can emerge stronger and fitter as international travel recovers, SIA said.
Correction note: An earlier version of this story said that Singapore Airlines implemented the pay cuts in September last year. The cuts were implemented last March. We are sorry for the error.
