Two thirds of Air Malta workers want to leave the airline

Air Malta received 571 applications from workers to be transferred to government jobs as part of the airline’s restructuring process.

Last month, the government announced a voluntary employee transfer scheme in order to cut Air Malta’s workforce by half and save €15 million per year in wages.

The airline said it received 571 applications from 824 eligible employees, pilots excluded, when the scheme closed on 11 February.

“The rightsizing of the airline was one of eight cost improvement opportunities identified by the airline and the external strategic consultants appointed by the shareholder. The rightsizing of the airline was assessed on a function-by-function basis and aligned to the extent and scale of its planned operations and to other comparable airlines”, Air Malta said.

Air Malta has been struggling financially for years while the government awaits permission from the European Commission to pump state aid into its airline.

It is understood that Brussels expects the airline to drastically reduce its bloated workforce to usual levels before allowing a cash injection through public funds.