Jet Airways clears August salaries of senior-staff, September payments delayed
Crisis-hit Jet Airways yesterday paid the balance amount of salaries for the month of August to its pilots, engineers, and senior management, but told them that September payments would be delayed, sources said. As part of a staggered payment plan, the full service carrier was to clear the remaining 50% of the August salary to these personnel on September 26.
'September payroll to be delayed due to Brent price hike'
On the scheduled date, the airline could pay only half of that amount due to paucity of funds. The remaining money was to be paid on October 9, which the airline did. However, the salary for September will be delayed due to "continuing rise in the price of Brent fuel and the appreciation of the USD," informed Rahul Taneja, Chief People Officer, Jet Airways.
Salaries till November to be paid in two installments
Noting that these are unavoidable delays, Taneja asserted every effort would be made to release the September salary at the earliest. Last month, Jet Airways informed that its staff would receive their salaries in two installments till November. August salary was to be paid on September 11 and September 26 and that of September would be paid on October 11 and October 26.
No firm date given for making the September payment: NAG
However, the management has conveyed that it's not in a position to honor the October-11 commitment for part payment of salaries and no firm date has been given for making the payment, said the National Aviator's Guild, which represents around 1,000 pilots of Jet Airways.
85% employees were paid on time despite financial problems: Jet
Reiterating its commitment to honor its obligations, the Mumbai-based 26-year-old airline points out, "It's only in the last couple of months that the payroll schedule has been impacted due to unavoidable reasons." "Despite these challenges, the company has ensured that 85% of its employees are paid salaries on time while those of the leadership, pilots and engineers have been delayed," it emphasized.
Airline received a breather from JPPL of Rs. 258 crore
The airline, which is struggling to raise capital for its various payment obligations, received a breather from its loyalty program Jet Privilege Private Ltd. (JPPL). JPPL offered about Rs. 258 crore for the advance purchase of discounted tickets. JPPL is 50.1% owned by Abu Dhabi-based and second-largest airline of UAE Etihad Airways, while the rest 49.9% is with Jet Airways.
