© Emirates
Emirates cabin crews represent 15 nationalities on average, and most foreign employees trust the airline to obtain visas that allow them to live in Dubai. Losing a job generally means losing that visa and returning to a native country where the aviation job market may be small or non-existent. Emirates
- Emirates will offer four months of unpaid leave to pilots and stewardesses, as part of an apparent effort to delay or prevent further layoffs.
- The Dubai-based airline has seen demand for international travel collapse during the coronavirus pandemic.
- In an interview with Business Insider, Emirates President Tim Clark described the logistical challenges of downsizing as Emirates, which mostly consists of expatriates.
- Visit the Business Insider home page for more stories.
Emirates plans to offer up to four months of unpaid leave to pilots and flight attendants as the coronavirus pandemic continues to taint demand for international air travel.
The vacation deals, first reported by Reuters, come after the airline cut thousands of jobs and cut wages in June and July. According to Reuters, eligible employees would take four months off between August and November, and still receive benefits, including accommodation.
Emirates has been among the airlines most affected by the coronavirus pandemic. Although airlines around the world have seen a modest increase in demand for domestic and, in some cases, regional travel, most long-distance travel is still limited by various travel restrictions and anxieties.
Dubai-based Emirates flies exclusively on international flights. The state-owned airline operates a global radio and long-distance system, which transports passengers between remote international destinations and connects through its downtown Dubai.
Although the airline has been able to keep some revenue flowing thanks to strong demand for air cargo, it has largely landed its largest passenger plane, the Airbus A380, and has reduced its routes and frequencies.
In an interview with Business Insider earlier this month, Emirates President Tim Clark said the airline was trying to balance personnel needs with the collapse of revenue from passenger traffic.
“We have kept our staff the best we can,” Clark said. “Management reviews it every week. We look at our financial situation, we see what we can pay and to whom, and how many we can afford to retain at the moment.”
One complication, Clark said, is that Emirates depends on a workforce made up primarily of foreign citizens.
Emirates cabin crews represent 15 nationalities on average, and most foreign employees trust the airline to obtain the visas that allow them to live in Dubai. Losing a job generally means losing that visa and returning to a native country where the aviation job market may be small or non-existent. If they can return: Clark said the airline is helping laid-off workers who were unable to fly home due to pandemic-related travel restrictions and flight cancellations, including the offer of financial assistance.
“We are very, very alive because of the fact that this is very difficult for the workforce because they are predominantly expatriates and are not in their country of residence, which means that they must be repatriated to their place of origin, and a situation that is quite it lasts in terms of future employment. ”
Meanwhile, Clark said, his airline is working on mechanisms to speed up the rehire process for the laid-off workers, provided the trip recovers enough to make it feasible. “If things recover sooner rather than later,” he said, “we’ll bring them back so fast that their feet don’t touch the ground.”
Video: By the Numbers: Airline to Pay for Passenger Coronavirus Expenses (ABC News)
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