JOIN USJet staff in citystill await salary
As Jet Airways ground all its planes and suspended operations, it left many of its employees in Bengaluru in distress.
They aren’t sure what the future holds for them, and whether the airline will resume operations. Reports say about 20,000 jobs are at stake.
A member of Jet’s cabin crew (who didn’t wish to be named for this story), spoke to Metrolife about what happened in the run-up to the shutdown.
“We were not aware of anything that was happening because we were never informed. We only knew that flight captains weren’t paid their salary since November. It was only after media started reporting that we found out about what was going on with Jet Airways,” she says.
The cabin crew have not got their month salary for a month, nor is there any talk of compensation.
“If we don’t get a salary in May, it is going to be two months without money. For the last five-six days, the company has emailing us about the developments,” says the crew member.
She has been associated with the airline for 12 years, and says the experience was “great.”
“It is disheartening to see the company going through this phase,” she says.
Launched in 1993
Jet Airways was founded in 1992 and began full-fledged operations in 1995. In October 2017, it became the second-largest airline in India after IndiGo. Before its temporary suspension, it operated flights to 52 destinations.
The airline’s financial woes reached a crisis in February this year. It ceased international flights on April 12. It grounded all planes on April 17.
Protest march
Employees of Jet Airlines are taking out a silent march in Bengaluru on April 22.