Published March 26, 2009

Keen on 2-year no-pay leave? SIA asks staff

Shorter workweek edges closer; no plans to shut flying schools in Australia

By VEN SREENIVASAN

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(SINGAPORE) Singapore Airlines (SIA) is in advanced talks with unions to introduce a shorter workweek for all staff.

The company has also asked staff for 'expressions of interest' in taking no-pay leave for up to two years. Applications close on March 31.

After that, the company will look at other measures to reduce man-hours to match its planned capacity cuts of 11 per cent in the coming financial year.

'We are in discussions with all our unions about proposals to introduce a shorter work month, achieved through accelerated leave clearance or no-pay leave, or a combination of both,' said SIA spokesman Stephen Forshaw.

'The measures will help manage the surplus staff capacity that arises across the business from the reduction in flights over the next financial year.'

He said that the scheme has been offered to pilots, cabin crew and all ground staff, but will be implemented differently, based on operational needs.

'A critical component of our plan to manage the consequences of the downturn is to spread the burden evenly across the organisation. The approach to the discussions with staff and unions is cooperative and we hope to work forward with our staff soon.'

Mr Forshaw also denied reports suggesting that SIA was shutting down its Australian flying schools in Perth and on the Gold Coast.

'We are in fact continuing to recruit trainee pilots. It takes up to two-and- a-half years to train these pilots and we need to keep the flow of pilots coming well after this slowdown is over.'

As for the closure of SIA's Brisbane and Perth overseas pilot bases, he said that this was part of a process of overseas-base shutdowns that began several years ago.

'We have progressively, for some time now, been winding down our overseas pilot bases in Sydney, London, Los Angeles, Brisbane and Perth.

'Sydney, LA and London have all been closed for some time. Brisbane and Perth are being closed also, and this will result in the 19 pilots from those two bases being made redundant. Our flight operations team is in discussion with those pilots about the issues involved.'

While cost considerations are largely behind the closure of overseas bases, the latest shutdowns are also related to the fact that SIA's Perth and Brisbane services will be served by the airline's new A330- 300s, which will replace the B777s that now serve the route.

'The overseas bases were useful in the past when we wanted different locations for pilot bases, but this isn't the case any more,' said Mr Forshaw.

'We stopped recruiting into those bases some years ago and have been gradually reducing them by natural attrition for some time. The change of aircraft type operating to Brisbane and Perth from April - we will be flying the A330 on these routes - means there is no benefit from basing pilots in these locations for aircraft that don't even fly there.'

But SIA is not contemplating cutting headcount or pay yet. 'The formula for pay cuts has not been triggered yet as the company is still making profit,' Mr Forshaw said.

Asked if the airline's 7,000 cabin crew could be trimmed, he said: 'These employees are on contract terms, and we generally see high turnover and natural attrition. The surplus will reduce as we stop recruiting.'

SIA has also rejected oft-heard calls from its pilots' union to retrench expatriate pilots first, if it starts cutting cockpit crew.

'The expiry of pilot contracts is reviewed on a case-by-case basis and we repudiate the view put by the union that expatriate pilots should be the first to go,' Mr Forshaw said.

'That said, it will depend on whether we will require the pilot's services, and in the case of some of the expatriate pilots who are on the 747-400 fleet, where our need for pilots is reducing as we phase the fleet out, it does, unfortunately, stand to reason that some of the pilots on contract from this fleet have not had their contracts renewed.

'As we have often stated in the past, we rely on a good mix of local and expatriate pilots to strengthen the expertise across the fleet types we operate - and that position will remain one that we adhere to. We do not - and will not - distinguish selection of pilots on the basis of race.'

SIA's capacity and cost- cutting measures come as the global aviation industry stares at a US$4.7 billion loss this year as passenger traffic falls 5.7 per cent and cargo traffic slumps 13 per cent.