PAL rejects pilots' resignation

MANILA, Philippines - Philippine Airlines (PAL) rejected yesterday the resignation of more than two dozen pilots and ordered them to return to work within seven days.

PAL said the pilots must respect their existing contracts with the company or face civil, administrative and criminal charges.

“PAL doesn’t want to get in the way of its pilots’ dream of landing better paying jobs abroad, but they have contractual obligations with the company and a moral responsibility to thousands of passengers,” PAL said in a statement.

PAL spokesman Jonathan Gesmundo said while some pilots left, “PAL has some 500 remaining pilots. At least one-third of the 500 are available at any given time.” He said the airline is adjusting the schedules of the pilots to fill the vacancies.

He said PAL is preparing to sue the pilots who resigned, saying they violated “their promise to pay for their training by serving PAL for an agreed period” and Philippine Overseas Employment Administration rules.

“They could be considered overseas Filipino workers, so they should give advance notice of at least six months” before they resign so their replacement could be given necessary training, Gesmundo said.

In the last few days, PAL was forced to cancel several regional and domestic flights after 13 captains and 12 first officers flying its Airbus A319s and A320s resigned from the flag carrier.

PAL said the pilots left without giving PAL ample time to train replacements.

Yesterday, PAL canceled eight flights due to pilot shortage, but it expressed optimism that the flag carrier’s operations would return to normal within the week.

The eight cancelled flights include Manila-Cagayan-Manila (PR 181/182); Manila-Bacolod-Manila (PR 133/134); Manila-Iloilo-Manila (PR 147/148); and Manila-Cebu-Manila (PR 847/848). Meanwhile, a Manila-Iloilo-Manila flight (PR 145/146) that usually leaves Manila at 4:20 p.m. was rescheduled to 6:30 p.m.

PAL asked for public understanding as it adjusts flight schedules and merges some flights. It also intensified the training of more pilots to fill the gap, the company said.

According to PAL officials, they could not prevent the pilots’ resignation because many of them simply did not show up for work and just handed in their resignation letters.

“Some of them even owe PAL millions of pesos for the cost of their training,” the flag carrier said.

PAL added that most of the resigned pilots were “pirated” by other carriers in the Asian region and the Middle East, where the pay is allegedly two or three times their current salaries.

“By Philippine standards, an Airbus A320 pilot’s pay at PAL is considered ‘high.’ But it’s still no match to the offer of foreign carriers. Our problem is, our competitors abroad seem to prefer PAL pilots because they were highly-trained by PAL and renowned for their flying skills,” PAL said.

Considered “mission critical skills,” pilots and aircraft mechanics are required by government regulations to give their local employers at least 180 days or six months to find suitable replacements before taking another job abroad.

PAL officials said they are discussing with different government agencies, including Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) and the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP), possible measures to avert the exodus of pilots abroad. 

CAAP director general Alfonso Cusi said he has ordered the agency’s legal department to look into the employment contracts of the pilots who resigned. – With Mayen Jaymalin, Mary Ann Reyes, Rainier Allan Ronda