TechCentralTechCentral
    Facebook Twitter YouTube LinkedIn
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn YouTube
    TechCentral TechCentral
    NEWSLETTER
    • News

      Alviva shares leap higher on R3-billion take-private offer

      30 June 2022

      Datatec to sell Analysys Mason for as much as R4.1-billion

      30 June 2022

      Futuregrowth launches start-up fund, targets R600-million raise

      30 June 2022

      Eskom is killing the rand

      30 June 2022

      Eskom ramps up load shedding as crisis deepens

      30 June 2022
    • World

      Graphics card prices plummet as crypto demand dries up

      30 June 2022

      Bitcoin just had its worst quarter in a decade

      30 June 2022

      Samsung beats TSMC to 3nm chip production

      30 June 2022

      Napster plots crypto comeback

      29 June 2022

      Pictures: Chinese spacecraft acquires images of entire planet of Mars

      29 June 2022
    • In-depth

      The NFT party is over

      30 June 2022

      The great crypto crash: the fallout, and what happens next

      22 June 2022

      Goodbye, Internet Explorer – you really won’t be missed

      19 June 2022

      Oracle’s database dominance threatened by rise of cloud-first rivals

      13 June 2022

      Everything Apple announced at WWDC – in less than 500 words

      7 June 2022
    • Podcasts

      How your organisation can triage its information security risk

      22 June 2022

      Everything PC S01E06 – ‘Apple Silicon’

      15 June 2022

      The youth might just save us

      15 June 2022

      Everything PC S01E05 – ‘Nvidia: The Green Goblin’

      8 June 2022

      Everything PC S01E04 – ‘The story of Intel – part 2’

      1 June 2022
    • Opinion

      Has South Africa’s advertising industry lost its way?

      21 June 2022

      Rob Lith: What Icasa’s spectrum auction means for SA companies

      13 June 2022

      A proposed solution to crypto’s stablecoin problem

      19 May 2022

      From spectrum to roads, why fixing SA’s problems is an uphill battle

      19 April 2022

      How AI is being deployed in the fight against cybercriminals

      8 April 2022
    • Company Hubs
      • 1-grid
      • Altron Document Solutions
      • Amplitude
      • Atvance Intellect
      • Axiz
      • BOATech
      • CallMiner
      • Digital Generation
      • E4
      • ESET
      • Euphoria Telecom
      • IBM
      • Kyocera Document Solutions
      • Microsoft
      • Nutanix
      • One Trust
      • Pinnacle
      • Skybox Security
      • SkyWire
      • Tarsus on Demand
      • Videri Digital
      • Zendesk
    • Sections
      • Banking
      • Broadcasting and Media
      • Cloud computing
      • Consumer electronics
      • Cryptocurrencies
      • Education and skills
      • Energy
      • Fintech
      • Information security
      • Internet and connectivity
      • Internet of Things
      • Investment
      • IT services
      • Motoring and transport
      • Public sector
      • Science
      • Social media
      • Talent and leadership
      • Telecoms
    • Advertise
    TechCentralTechCentral
    Home»Sections»Motoring and transport»SAA nears collapse with plan to fire all staff

    SAA nears collapse with plan to fire all staff

    Motoring and transport By Agency Staff18 April 2020
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp Telegram Email
    SAA planes and Silver Falcons fly over Pretoria during the 2019 presidential inauguration. Image: Department of department of international relations & cooperation

    South African Airways plans to lay off its entire 4 700-strong workforce after failing to persuade the government to provide more financial help, a move that threatens to ground the 86-year-old national carrier for good.

    The state-owned airline has offered severance deals to all staff from the end of this month after administrators concluded that a successful turnaround is now unlikely, according to a proposal to eight labour groups. The basic value of compensation will be one-month pay per year of service and will depend on the successful disposal of assets such as real estate, according to the document.

    SAA has relied on bailouts and state-guaranteed debt agreements for years, having last made a profit in 2011, and was put into a form of bankruptcy protection in December. Public enterprises minister Pravin Gordhan said earlier this week that the cost of staving off the Covid-19 pandemic in the country meant no more cash could be extended, while finance minister Tito Mboweni said the carrier’s closure could help shore up state finances.

    SAA has relied on bailouts and state-guaranteed debt agreements for years, having last made a profit in 2011

    The coronavirus may prove the final nail in the coffin for SAA, which was reducing routes and considering job cuts even before the outbreak forced airlines around the world to ground planes. The industry could lose US$314-billion in ticket sales this year, according to the International Air Transport Association, as lockdowns and travel bans take an increasingly heavy toll on the global economy.

    SAA has been flying cargo planes and chartered flights to countries such as Germany and Brazil in recent weeks, but no commercial passenger services. The plan to offer severance packages to all staff was first reported by News24.

    Asset sales

    The team of administrators led by Les Matuson and Sizwe Dongwana will now look to sell assets and raise cash to repay creditors. Two prized nighttime operating slots at London’s Heathrow Airport could be up for grabs, people familiar with the situation said in February.

    SAA is among several South African state-owned companies to have become technically insolvent without financial assistance from the government, following years of mismanagement and corruption scandals — particularly under the presidency of Jacob Zuma, which ended in 2018.

    The airline has seen at least nine CEO changes in the past decade, hampering attempts at a turnaround, while responsibility for the carrier was passed from the department of public enterprises to the national treasury and back again.  — Reported by John Bowker and Loni Prinsloo, (c) 2020 Bloomberg LP

    Jacob Zuma Les Matuson Pravin Gordhan SAA Sizwe Dongwana South African Airways Tito Mboweni top
    Share. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp Telegram Email
    Previous ArticleEmergency spectrum from Icasa: Here’s who’s getting what
    Next Article How SA operators will use occupied TV spectrum for broadband

    Related Posts

    Alviva shares leap higher on R3-billion take-private offer

    30 June 2022

    Datatec to sell Analysys Mason for as much as R4.1-billion

    30 June 2022

    Futuregrowth launches start-up fund, targets R600-million raise

    30 June 2022
    Add A Comment

    Comments are closed.

    Promoted

    Billetterie simplifies interactions between law firms and clients

    30 June 2022

    Think herding cats is tricky? Try herding a cloud

    29 June 2022

    How your business can help hybrid workers effectively

    28 June 2022
    Opinion

    Has South Africa’s advertising industry lost its way?

    21 June 2022

    Rob Lith: What Icasa’s spectrum auction means for SA companies

    13 June 2022

    A proposed solution to crypto’s stablecoin problem

    19 May 2022

    Subscribe to Updates

    Get the best South African technology news and analysis delivered to your e-mail inbox every morning.

    © 2009 - 2022 NewsCentral Media

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.