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Agreement between SAA and pilots finally signed on Friday

Details

saa thumb medium95 76Fin24 reports that SA Airways (SAA) announced on Friday evening that it had reached an agreement with the SAA Pilots' Association (Saapa), thus marking another significant milestone towards resuming operations.

The deal was signed and ratified on Friday and followed the in-principle agreement reached on 6 July. Saapa member pilots voted with a 94.9% majority in favour of the deal in a ballot process that closed on 11 July. The negotiations have taken more than ten months. “Our pilots will now receive all monies due to them. We have already started the process to make payments that do not require tax directives," said SAA's interim CEO Thomas Kgokolo. SAA went into business rescue on 5 December 2019 and pilots have not received salaries since March 2020. SAA's business rescue practitioners imposed a lock-out on Saapa members from 18 December 2020, seeking to get assent to a new agreement in terms of which salaries of all pilots will be reduced by 50%. Saapa went on strike earlier this year, demanding that its members be retrenched at terms and conditions under the existing regulating agreement. More than 200 SAA pilots took voluntary severance packages during the airline's business rescue process. Overall, Saapa members will be retrenched at below what they would be entitled to under the regulating agreement. Saapa expects that about 290 will have to still be retrenched in order to leave the 88 envisioned in terms of the rescue plan. Retrenched pilots will get severance pay of one week for each completed year of service, two months' notice pay, and three months' back pay in settlement for the period 1 April to 30 November 2020. All accumulated and accrued leave will be paid at full value, except for the period of lockout. Pilots will also get their 13th cheques due for 2019 and that of 2020 and payment of their salary from 1 to 18 December 2020.

  • Read the full original of the informative report in the above regard by Carin Smith at Fin24


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