Johannesburg - South African Airways (SAA)
resumed some regional flights on Tuesday but warned that only a
deal with striking unions can resolve its current crisis, as the
government said it has no more money for the cash-strapped state
carrier.
The airline has cancelled hundreds of flights since the
strike began on Friday, with the stoppage initially costing R50
million per day, though that figure has
come down as some flights have resumed.
It has also jeopardised talks with lenders, SAA said.
The carrier met with the unions and Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan on Tuesday morning, but SAA
acting chairwoman Thandeka Mgoduso said Gordhan had reiterated
that there is nothing in the public coffers for the airline.
"The statement is the same, there is no more money," she
told a news conference, adding that SAA would continue talks
with the unions in the afternoon.
"The players who will resolve this ... are SAA and the
unions, not the minister."
She later told Reuters that the government had not made any
recommendations on what the airline should do to end the strike
over job cuts and wages.
SAA has not made a profit since 2011 and has relied on state
bailouts for its survival.
A spokeswoman for the National Union of Metalworkers of
South Africa (NUMSA), which called the strike alongside the
South African Cabin Crew Association (SACCA), said the unions
had given the minister a framework for ending the strike and
solving SAA's financial problems.
A statement issued by the Department of Public Enterprises
said the government was committed to saving the airline, but not
with money, with repeated bailouts becoming a "moral hazard".
It said the minister had urged the unions to work with SAA,
with the ultimate aim of saving both the airline and jobs. But
this would "require everybody to make sacrifices".
Another large union at SAA, the National Transport Movement
(NTM), is not participating in the strike and says it has a
mandate from members to accept the offer of a 5.9% wage increase
for the next financial year.
However, it will only do so if the airline removes a clause
saying it is conditional on the company having sufficient funds
for the increase.
SAA executives said roughly a fifth of the SAA workforce was
still on strike. About 11,000 passengers had been scheduled to
fly with the airline on each day of the action so far.
NUMSA and SACCA threatened on Sunday to extend the strike to
members at more airlines and other organisations across the
industry.
The strike has cast doubt over SAA's survival hopes. SAA
says it needs to cut headcount to restore profitability and is
unable to raise its wage offer any further because of its dire
financial situation.
Acting finance chief Deon Fredericks told the conference
that a multibillion-rand loan being negotiated with banks to
provide working capital would, once secured, leave SAA in a much
better position to cope with the impact of the strike.
If this is not in place by February, he later told Reuters,
SAA would look for other lenders.
The government is still looking for an equity partner for
the airline, but SAA must stabilise first, he said, a process
that could take at least two years.
In the meantime, other executives said that a few hundred
workers had returned to work despite the strike, enabling SAA to
resume some regional flights. International flights had already
resumed but domestic flights remain grounded.