Only 282 workers applied for voluntary leave from "Jat Airways"

Total of 282 workers have applied for the voluntary leave from “Jat Airways" with the stimulus severance pay of 300 EUR per year of work. The deadline expired yesterday (March 4, 2009), and that was the last opportunity for the employees to get the severance pay for leaving the company. Since the company still has more workers than it needs, the management will start dismissing surplus manpower in few days.

“Jat” has, so far, had 1,697 employees. According to the plan for business turn-about, the national airliner must have less than 1,200 workers before summer, while that number has to be reduced to 850 by the end of the year because the global standard stipulates so. In few days, the new contract for maintenance of airplanes will be signed with "Jat tehnika".

The Government of Serbia has approved the loan of 10m EUR to the national airliner for stimulus severance pays and overhaul of the fleet. Half of the money will be paid prior to March 11 at the latest. The contract has been signed with Minister Diana Dragutinović, and now only the Ministry of Finance should issue the payment order to the Treasury.

- The workers had their chance to leave the company with good severance pays, but very small number of them applied – says captain Milan Jovanović, the President of the Trade union of pilots. – In order for the company to survive, the management must start dismissing surplus manpower, which is an unpopular measure, but it is the only way for "Jat" to stay on its feet.