Pilots and engineers of cash-strapped Kingfisher Airlines, who haven?t been paid their salaries for five months, went on a flash strike on Wednesday, forcing the airline to cancel 31 flights from Delhi and Mumbai.
This is the fifth such incident in as many months as the employees struggle to have their grievances addressed in the absence of a registered union. Kingfisher already operates a skeletal schedule of 120 flights a day, a third of what it was operating last year. It has had to send back 11 aircraft to lessors this year and the airline owes R8,022 crore to lenders.
?Some of our colleagues haven?t been paid since February while most have not had salaries since April,? a Mumbai-based pilot said on condition of anonymity. ?It is worse for our engineer friends who get paid far less than us and are mostly the primary bread earners for their families.?
?Those of us who are still with Kingfisher Airlines are so because we haven?t yet found jobs elsewhere,? the pilot added. Shares of Kingfisher Airlines fell marginally on the BSE on Wednesday, and was trading at R8.65 at end of trade.
More than half of the liquor baron Vijay Mallya-owned airline?s engineers and pilots have quit since November 2011. More than 100 of the 200 engineers and nearly 400 pilots have left, seeking greener pastures and many are yet to find a job.
?With the aviation industry like it is, there are not many jobs on offer immediately,? a former Kingfisher Airlines aircraft maintenance staff member said. ?But there is hope out of the 120 engineers that have quit nearly half have found jobs in other airlines both domestic, international and some have even joined non-scheduled operators at nearly half of their salaries.?
Kingfisher?s pilots, who once enjoyed salaries of over R2-3 lakhs a month, are now being forced to dip into their rapidly depleting savings, depend on spouses for household expenses and some who reside in rented accommodations are even seeking cheaper flats.
?How can we work with a focused mind if we need to constantly keep thinking how to feed our families,? said the pilot quoted above. ?As soon as I see a job opportunity elsewhere I will move.?
What makes matters worse is that the airline has been paying salaries selectively and whenever a section of employees go on strike they manage to get partial payments of salaries. ?We have no union so there is a definite lack of unity,? said the engineer quoted above. ?You have been seeing flash strikes because as soon as some employees feel the financial pinch they go on strike while others don?t join in.?
?The airline has been making the same promises of roping in an investor and clearing salary dues but as you all know nothing has happened,? the person added.
Kingfisher Airlines did not respond on the matter of non-payment of salaries to the employees.
The airline will announce its first quarter results on Thursday and its board of directors is meeting in New Delhi.