[SINGAPORE] Jetstar Asia employees were only informed of their retrenchment at 7 am on Wednesday (Jun 11) – the same morning the public announcement went out.
“It was unexpected – all my managers were also in shock, and they didn’t see it coming,” said a cabin crew member, who declined to be named.
“Dropping the bomb suddenly – it’s kind of ridiculous and frustrating for us. I was awake from 7 am till now, still trying to process what happened. It’s a bit unfair.”
The Qantas Group-owned budget carrier sent a press release at 7.22 am to announce it would cease operations on Jul 31, laying off over 500 employees in Singapore.
Just before that, some employees were alerted via text to join a townhall, on a crew activation system typically used to mobilise reserve staff. This was followed by e-mails about the retrenchment, and a virtual townhall on Microsoft Teams at 8.15 am.
Jetstar Asia’s management also instructed staff not to speak to the media, The Business Times understands.
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Affected employees will receive four weeks’ salary for each year of service, along with a performance-based bonus for financial year 2025 and a “thank-you payment”, understood to be around S$1,200.
Still, the sudden layoff is expected to disproportionately affect employees such as cabin crew, whose basic salaries are supplemented largely through flight allowances, the employee explained.
In the employee’s case, the base pay amounts to about S$1,000 a month. The employee said that Jetstar Asia’s decision to cancel upcoming flights ahead of its Jul 31 closure will further reduce their earnings in the weeks ahead.
“I checked the iChangi app (and) there’s a lot of our flights that have been cancelled or re-timed, and I see (that) mine have been mostly cancelled,” the employee added.
“To me, it kind of sucks, because if today has already been cancelled, tomorrow also will be the same thing – until Jul 31, I don’t know whether I’m going to do more flights, or fewer flights.”
Higher costs
Jetstar Asia, which began operations in 2004, cited rising supplier costs, airport fees and aviation charges, along with intensifying regional competition, as reasons for its closure.
Customers impacted by the shutdown will be offered alternative flights or full refunds.
The impending closure affects 16 intra-Asia routes – including flights from Singapore to Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta, Bangkok and Manila – but will not affect Jetstar’s operations in Australia, New Zealand or Japan.
Changi Airport Group said Jetstar Asia flew about 180 flights a week and carried 2.3 million passengers in 2024, or roughly 3 per cent of total traffic.
Its fleet of 13 Airbus aircraft will be redeployed within the Qantas Group to support growth in Australia and New Zealand.
Union support
The Singapore Manual & Mercantile Workers’ Union (SMMWU) said it was notified of the job cuts and has negotiated with Jetstar Asia to “ensure that affected members and workers are treated with care and receive fair compensation”.
“The company has committed to providing a comprehensive retrenchment package in line with the Tripartite Advisory on Managing Excess Manpower and Responsible Retrenchment,” it added in a statement.
SMMWU is working with the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) to help affected workers find their footing, said NTUC secretary-general Ng Chee Meng.
From next week, NTUC and the Employment & Employability Institute, e2i, will be on-site at Changi Airport Terminal 1 – where Jetstar Asia’s office is located – to provide affected workers with direct support, the labour chief said in a Wednesday Facebook post.
This will include career coaching, skills upgrading and employability assistance.
“NTUC is also working with our partners to support these workers,” added Ng. “We are exploring opportunities (with) Singapore Airlines Group, a unionised company, to match affected Jetstar Asia employees, including crew and corporate staff, to suitable roles where possible.”
