With the COVID-19 pandemic affecting earnings of airlines the world over, GoAir announced that its staff will be taking pay cuts this month. Last week, Vinay Dube, CEO, GoAir, had announced that only the Airline’s top leaders will take a pay cut of up to 50 per cent. However, the Airline then went ahead and laid off its expat pilots and also sent staff members on unpaid leave, in turns, as part of additional cost-cutting measures.
Dube then informed all employees that given the present state of affairs, the Airline is left with no option but to impose salary cuts on all employees in March. At the same time, he assured that those in the lowest pay grades will not be hit too hard.
This is the first time, since its inception 14 years back, that GoAir has had to impose pay cuts. Dube assured the staff that when things start working in favour of the Airline, the staff will be compensated for the inconvenience they have been put through right now.
Dube also requested all the employees, except those specifically required to preserve the aircrafts for resumption of operations, to stay home during the lockdown period.
With India banning all international commercial passenger flights with effect from March 22 and all domestic flights with effect from March 24, the aviation sector in the country is bound to be adversely affected.
The senior employees of IndiGo have already been asked to take a pay cut of up to 25 per cent. Air India has also decided to reduce the allowances of its staff by 10 per cent, excluding the cabin crew, for the next three months.
