90% of laid-off Jetstar pilots & cabin crew have secured interviews or new jobs: Ng Chee Meng

Budget airline Jetstar Asia recently ceased operations on Jul. 31, which impacted around 500 employees.

However, with the help of various labour organisations in Singapore, including the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC), 90 per cent of the pilots and cabin crew have either secured a new job or a job interview, according to labour chief Ng Chee Meng in a Facebook post on Sep. 10.

Meeting

Ng said he met with a number of former Jetstar employees who had found new jobs with Scoot, another budget airline which is a subsidiary of SIA.

These included pilots, cabin crew and corporate staff, who shared their experiences and concerns with the Member of Parliament for Jalan Kayu, such as fitting into a new company culture and adjusting to technological shifts.

Ng listed the organisations that helped the workers:

• Aerospace and aviation unions
• Singapore Manual and Mercantile Workers' Union
• NTUC's Employment & Employability Institute, e2i
• Singapore Airlines Group
• Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore

He shared:

"We organised a 3-day job matching exercise to assist as best as we could.

Of the pilots and cabin crew, 90 per cent have secured interviews or jobs with companies like SIA Group and Marina Bay Sands."

Ng also encouraged workers who are still exploring options or rethinking their next steps to seek support from NTUC's e2i career coaches and job matching services.

Shutdown

Jetstar made its closure announcement on Jun. 11 with a statement on its website, citing escalating costs and growing competition in the region.

Jetstar informed Mothership that around 500 employees would be affected.

"This is incredibly difficult news for our Jetstar Asia team members and customers, and the Jetstar Group is committed to providing support during this time with a range of options in place for all those impacted."

It said all affected Jetstar Asia employees would be provided redundancy benefits, as well as employment support services.

These include a redundancy payment of four weeks per completed year of service, a bonus payment for the 2025 financial year, a special thank you payment, and continued access to staff travel benefits for a period that's equivalent to the staff's tenure.

Parent group Qantas said it is also actively working to find job opportunities across the group and with other airlines in the region.

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Top image from Ng Chee Meng's Facebook.