Vistara, the Indian full-service airline will impose a pay cut of five to 20 per cent from July 1 to December 31, 2020, for about 40 per cent of its 4,000-strong workforce. This move is expected to help the airline tide over the financial pressure caused by the adverse effect of the pandemic on business.
However, the remaining 60 per cent of the workforce will not face any pay cut.
Staff belonging to levels 4 and 5 will take a cut of 15 per cent; those in levels 2 and 3, as well as licensed engineers in level 1C will face a cut of 10 per cent; and staff in level 1 whose CTC per month is Rs 50,000 or more will take a cut of five per cent.
The pilots of Vistara, who were receiving a base flying allowance for 70 hours a month till April, will now continue to face a reduction of monthly base flying allowance to 20 hours, till the end of the year. Pilots will also be able to adjust their allowances under specific training categories.
In April, some senior staff members had been asked to go on compulsory leave without pay (LWP) for up to six days. The same employees were told to take LWP for up to four days a month, in May and June too.
While domestic flights have started operating in India since May 25, it is understood that it will be a while before demand for flights gets back to anywhere near normal. Amidst the low demand and financial pressure, Vistara is taking all possible measures to conserve cash, cut costs and save the jobs of its staff.
