flydubai to reduce staff pay for three months due to coronavirus

By Alexander Cornwell

DUBAI (Reuters) - United Arab Emirates carrier flydubai will reduce pay for its employees for three months from April due to the impact of the global coronavirus crisis on its business, a spokeswoman said on Monday.

Airlines around the world have been hammered by the outbreak that has virtually halted international travel. Flydubai has suspended scheduled operations.

"This decision has not been taken lightly. It has been made to offer some stability at a time of uncertainty and to minimize the impact on all its employees when the normal pattern of life has been disrupted," the spokeswoman told Reuters.

The spokeswoman did not say by how much pay would be reduced but said senior employees would contribute a greater share and that measures had been taken to reduce the impact on junior staff. Other employee benefits would not be affected, she said.

A flydubai employee, who requested anonymity as they were not authorized to speak to press, said pilots and engineers would be paid half their basic salaries and cabin crew would be paid 25% less.

Fellow Dubai state airline Emirates, which has also suspended passenger flights, has already said staff wages would be temporarily reduced.

When asked if flydubai would seek state assistance, the spokeswoman said the airline continued to manage its liquidity carefully.

"We are working closely with our financial partners and key stakeholders including our aircraft lessors, financial institutions and airport authorities to explore different options in these unprecedented times."

(Reporting by Alexander Cornwell; Editing by Susan Fenton, Jane Merriman, Kirsten Donovan)