Eastar Air "Cannot Pay March Salaries... Idle Workforce Adjustment Unavoidable"

CEO Choi Jong-gu's Message on the Company Bulletin Board
"Early Return of Funds and Adjustment of Idle Workforce Will Also Begin"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Yu Je-hoon] Eastar Jet, which has been pushed to the brink of collapse due to the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), has decided to implement leave of absence (suspension of work) for all employees except essential personnel starting from April. In addition, it indicated plans to begin full-scale adjustments of idle personnel. The payment of March salaries, originally scheduled for the 25th, will also be postponed.

Choi Jong-gu, CEO of Eastar Jet, released a statement on the company bulletin board on the 23rd, saying, "Since the COVID-19 outbreak, we have done our best to minimize damage through route reductions, shortened working hours, unpaid leave, and wage cuts, but the reality is that securing basic operating funds is difficult with only self-help efforts and minimal business activities," explaining the situation.

CEO Choi added, "We have tried to find extraordinary measures, such as joining forces with domestic low-cost carriers (LCCs) to request emergency operating funds from the government, but there have been no visible results so far," and said, "The way to overcome the current crisis is to minimize losses and complete the acquisition process as quickly as possible."

He also expressed his intention to take strong self-help measures, proposing ▲ suspension of all route operations for one month starting from the 24th ▲ leave of absence (suspension of work) for all employees except essential personnel ▲ return of aircraft. He stated, "Adjustment of idle personnel caused by early return of aircraft and reduced business volume has become inevitable," and added, "We will establish reasonable standards regarding the targets and methods through labor-management councils and proceed accordingly."

Regarding the March salary, CEO Choi said, "Regrettably, it is difficult to pay the salary scheduled for the 25th of this month," and bowed his head, expressing, "I cannot help but feel sorry and regretful."

CEO Choi concluded, "I am deeply sorry and regretful that we cannot provide immediate answers to the worries and anxieties of the employees who are devoted to the company," and promised once again, "We will do our best to successfully complete the acquisition process with Jeju Air as soon as possible and achieve management normalization."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.