Jet staff write to President, PM

‘Please help us get wage dues’

NEW DELHI: Employees of Jet Airways have written to President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking their intervention to recover outstanding dues as well as to expedite the process of emergency funds for the airline, which has shuttered its operations temporarily. Cash-starved Jet Airways, which has around 23,000 employees, has delayed payment of salaries to the employees, including pilots.

Amid uncertainty over the future course of the carrier, two employees’ unions have now written to the President and the Prime Minister. In separate but similarly worded letters, the Society for Welfare of Indian Pilots (SWIP) and Jet Aircraft Maintenance Engineers Welfare Association (JAMEWA) have requested help in clearing their outstanding salary dues.

“We request you to consider the situation with the urgency it deserves and direct the management of Jet Airways (India) Ltd to expeditiously disburse all outstanding dues to affected employees. We also urge you to expedite the process of emergency funding, as every minute and every decision is very critical in these testing times,” one of the letters said.

After months of uncertainty, Jet Airways announced temporary suspension of its operations on April 17 as it failed to receive emergency funds from lenders. The unions highlighted that a section of employees have not been paid their salaries on time for the last seven months and that the distressing situation was also brought to the notice of the Ministry of Labour & Employment in March.

“The management of Jet Airways has gone back on its salary arrears payment schedule conveyed by mail dated December 7, 2018.”