Spicejet Layoffs: Are 1,400 employees going to be laid off in SpiceJet? The airline said this

Cash-strapped budget airline SpiceJet is going to lay off 1,400 employees to cut costs and retain investor interest. The airline currently has 9,000 employees and operates around 30 aircraft. Eight of these are wet-leased from foreign carriers, along with crew and pilots. SpiceJet has confirmed the job cuts. An airline spokesperson said, “This decision has been taken keeping in mind the operational requirements to reduce the company’s costs.”

A person with knowledge of the matter said that in view of the salary bill of Rs 60 crore, it had become necessary to reduce the number of employees.

Referring to the layoffs, another person said, “People have already started getting calls. SpiceJet has been delaying salary payments for several months. Many people have not yet received their January salaries. SpiceJet has It is said that it is in the process of raising funds of Rs 2,200 crore, but experts believe that some investors have not shown interest in it. However, the airline spokesperson said, “There is no delay in funding and we are progressing well in terms of our fund raising and have already made our public announcements. “We are looking forward to additional funding for the next tranche. Will make announcements. Most of the investors have shown interest in it.

When SpiceJet was at its peak in 2019, the airline had a fleet of 118 aircraft and 16,000 employees. Its nearest competitor in terms of market share is Akasa Air, which has a fleet of 23 aircraft and 3,500 employees. They have about 4% share in the domestic market.