THAI Airways is undergoing a massive staff reduction program that also included a re-assessment of existing employees for new contracts when the airlines restarts, however 4,250 of 13,554 employees failed the test.
Those who didn’t meet the (unspecified) requirements are forced to retire from the company or submit to an additional round of screening.
THAI has drastically reduced the amount of employees over the recent years which had peaked at 27,000 in 2008 and since then was on a steady downwards slope, reaching 21,232 in 2020 when the pandemic started.
Since then various cuts were performed that included early retirement and buyout packages for employees, most of which have yet to be performed/paid out. This left the company with 13,554 which were invited to apply for new contracts with much leaner conditions compare to the old days.
As the Bangkok Post reported only 9,304 of them passed the muster for a new contract, the remaining ~ 4,200 were found not to be suitable and will have to accept a retirement package.
A total of 4,000 Thai Airways International Plc (THAI) employees have failed a screening programme to keep their jobs and will have little option but to accept early retirement, according to a source at the airline.
The number was calculated from the 13,554 employees who applied to continue working for the company. They were screened and 9,304 passed, the source said.
That leaves about 4,000 employees who failed. However, they can either join the early retirement scheme of the airline or register for a second round of screening. …
The process divided the employees into three groups; those sailing through who will sign a new employment contract in the middle of this month; those who passed but wish to enter the early retirement programme; and those who failed.
Employees who passed and intend to continue working for the airline will be employed under new contracts effective from May 1.
Those who passed but wish to forfeit their places in favour of early retirement must apply for the scheme by the end of today and they will be not replaced.
Those in the so-called fah mai (New Sky) group who failed the screening can either accept the early retirement package or apply for a second round of screening. This is because some positions were left unfilled after the first round.
Applications for the second screening round open from Monday to Thursday next week. The screening will get under way from April 19-23 with the results announced on April 28.
The second screening is only for positions where there had been applicants though nobody was qualified to assume them. Some successful applicants had also declined the positions earlier. …
It’s unclear what this “screening process” entails and by what merits existing employees are deemed to be unsuitable for a new contract, after all there were all hired at some point.
Thai Airways hiring practices have long been controversial, mostly based on connections within the company or by having someone with political influence placing people into the company, allowing the number to swell to the 2008 peak of 27,193 employees in total. The company has now shed 2/3 of these.
It’ll be interesting to see how the company will cope with these reduced numbers both in terms of operational ability and their financial performance in the years to come once the airline returns to an active aviation market.
I asked a few of my friends who passed the new contracts and a flight attendant will still earn relaively well with an ~ 2000 Baht/month cut. They have received three year contracts.
Conclusion
THAI has really put the axe to their employee numbers which will make for a much leaner company in the future and no longer having every position occupied with twice as many people as actually needed.
All employees forced out of the company will receive a compensation package for severing ties with THAI Airways, however money is quickly spent and then these people have to find a new job in a rather difficult economic climate. There has also been barely any salary for the past year apart from a small minimum payment so many might have incurred debt since then.
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Sack them all. Incompetent. They have run the company into the ground. Shut it down, get rid of it, nobody needs it, enough excellent carriers around.
It’s true to say there are a few excellent carriers, but not “enough” by any means.
Thai Airline’s FAs have not ruined Thailand’s national airline that is the responsibility of successive governments and corrupt Thai managers at all levels. The front line staff suffer management abuse, low wages, irregular hours and poor travel subsistence allowances often paid many months late and often short-changed. No longer having the receipts they are unable to challenge successfully.
If some Thai FAs shop for friends and family and/or can turn a small profit to supplement their low salaries and support their families, who are we to criticise them?
It can’t be much profit (if any) for giving up hours of their precious rest time trudging round foreign cities and then distributing and trying to collect the cash they are owed!
After all isn’t this just a microcosm of what we are doing in our own commercially focused, travelling lives?
The Thai FAs are not going to bring corruption to other countries — they are suffering from it and now 4,000+ will pay a heavy price for the corruption, bullying and inneptitude of their paymasters.
Be extra kind to those that remain on board because they are going to have to continue to suffer; not that they show it to us. They are far too professional.
Completely unlike the over-paid, over-indulged, union-crazed, lazy, rude, intoxicated, disheveled prima donnas of British Airways.
Many, if not all, rank and file staff got their jobs through connections, nepotism and other irregular means. So, yes, they did profit from corrupt practices. Maybe getting the job was more of a priority than doing a decent job and actually being qualified. Bleeding heart renditions of low salaries and having families to support, therefore cheating customs and excise with illegally imported good is to be excused? Give me a break. If the salaries were too low, resign and work elsewhere. Apart from that, rank and file staff were not aware of rampant corruption and mismanagement elsewhere within TG? What did they – or their unions – do about that? Answer: nothing. The status quo was too comfortable. Well, it’s over now. Btw, same story across the oceans with SAA.
I would like to say that the FAs I’ve been served by over many flights in all cabin classes have all displayed excellent deportment and beautiful manners.
This is something that can NEVER be said for ANY of the cabin crews of British Airways whose ONLY interest is in their own ability to do as little work as possible, get to the nearest bar as soon as possible after arrival and sod everything else.
It would be very useful if any Thai Airways FA training team that has been asked to retire could be given the same positions within BA and ALL existing BA trainers sacked – and take their training manuals with them.
This could be an excellent starting point for the much needed turn around of BA: aka ‘Bloody Awful’
Leave Thai staff in Thailand. If they leave that will contaminate anywhere they go with their corruption.
Indeed. Whilst BA staff allegedly headed for pub in their free time, TG staff went off to shop for items to flog off at home to friends and relatives, lugging home stuff by the plane load. Lol. Each to their own. By the sounds of it TG was heavily overstaffed and primarily served as a cash cow for the hiso set in Bkk. A bit like SA, also corrupt to the core, and bankrupt. Shut them all down.
I keep coming back to this article, finally realizing what was troubling me. “screening” is an odd word to use for skills/knowledge testing.
Years ago (I don’t recall and haven’t searched), it seems LL ran a story about the corruption that led to many “employees” just being names that got a paycheck and never actually showed up.
“screening” seems like an appropriate word for removing those from the “workforce” since they aren’t actually there in the first place. But, could 1/3rd of the pre-screening workforce have been ghosts?