Flag carrier Garuda Indonesia has laid off 181 pilots with little notice, a pilots’ union said, with the airline reportedly struggling financially amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to the Garuda Pilots’ Association (APG), as of June 1, Garuda terminated the contracts of 181 of its pilots with only a three-day notice, coming as an unpleasant surprise for those affected.
“In our contracts [the notice period] is at least 30 days or even 90 days for some,” APG Chairman Bintang Muzaini said yesterday.
“[Those who were laid off] were senior pilots, our best pilots.”
The association has expressed its displeasure at the layoffs and the manner in which they were conducted. It says it’s still attempting to discuss the matter with airline management in a bid to reverse the layoffs.
Separately, Garuda CEO Irfan Setiaputra said it was imperative for the airline to carry out redundancies by early termination of its pilots’ contracts in order to soften the financial blow caused by the pandemic.
“Through the early contract terminations, Garuda Indonesia still fulfilled its obligations to the rights of the pilots as stated in their contracts,” Irfan said in a statement yesterday.
The government is reportedly finalizing a US$1 billion bailout plan for Garuda as the health crisis has practically grounded the aviation industry to a halt. The airline is also close to avoiding a debt default with stakeholders reportedly agreeing to a three-year extension for its loan payments.
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