The union of Gulf Air employees will meet management of the Bahraini carrier on November 20 to discuss the future of its staff who could be facing redundancy, Gulf Daily News has reported.
As many as 1,800 staff could be laid off as part of a deal proposed by the government to secure National Assembly approval for a BD185 million bailout of the carrier. The restructuring plan will reportedly reduce the carrier’s losses from BD95 million to BD58 million a year by 2017. The plan also includes reducing the airline’s fleet and cutting routes, although both parliament and Shura Council must first approve the proposal before it can go ahead.
“We will be speaking about the future of Gulf Air and the staff situation,” Habib Al Nabbool, Gulf Air Trade Union chairman, reportedly told the publication. “Also, we have to address the issue of Gulf Air workers who are unique. They hold certificates that mean they are specialised in air travel. If they are jobless there is no other local company that can absorb them. Bahrain Air is too small, so these workers will be unemployed unless they leave the country and join another airline.
“A main concern is that in the last 65 years, the company has built bridges with other countries and they are talking about cancelling lines,” he continued. “It is not only the loss of staff that we are worried about, but also the loss of air traffic rights. They are so expensive to acquire and if we give them up, there is no guarantee that we can purchase them again later.”
According to the report, the parliament is due to hold a vote within the next few weeks on whether the current Gulf Air board should be replaced, and a consultancy firm brought in by the carrier should have its contract cancelled.