SriLankan pays lowest wages to pilots: Guild

• Only 250  pilots now, despite required cadre of  330
• Salaries were paid at an arbitrary USD capped  at the rate of initially  LKR 188  then  LKR 225 and  subsequently LKR 295 
• 70 pilots resigned during last year

By Chaturanga Pradeep Samarawickrama and Ajith Siriwardana   

While saying that Pilots’ salaries during the COVID-19 pandemic being slashed by 50%, the Airline Pilots’ Guild of Sri Lanka (ALPGSL) lamented that the SriLankan Airlines pays one of the lowest wages to pilots, well below industry standards.   

In a statement, ALPGSL said “Prior to June 2023 the pilots were paid their salaries at an arbitrary USD [the contracted currency by which pilots are remunerated] capped at the rate of initially LKR 188 then LKR 225 and subsequently LKR 295 (since December), which was nearly 40% below the rate of the Central Bank,”  “Though the pilots’ salaries were lowered by approximately 50 percent during the Covid-19 pandemic, they continued to work helping the airline generate revenue, and most importantly providing the services for critical medical supplies and other essential and urgent requirements for the country during the crisis. 

All pilots of the airline have educated themselves with private funding and have over the years borne the cost of their training at SriLankan Airlines,” it highlighted.   

Moreover, ALPGSL Secretary Captain Manil Abeyaratne said that SriLankan Airlines has only 250 pilots now as a result of the shortsighted, arbitrary and callous decisions of the management, whereas the required cadre is at least 330 pilots to function in full capacity for the designated flights and that more resignations are pending due to the issues faced by the pilots.  He also added that over 70 pilots had resigned from the Airline during last year and this has resulted in a complete dearth of pilots.