Thursday
2nd May 2024
Dhivehi Edition
Staff at Maldives Airports Company Limited (MACL) have raised their concerns over the company’s failure to award them bonuses for the past three years.
MACL had given out bonuses to all staff from their annual profits. This was last given in 2018.
Staff have reported that no bonuses have been given since.
When contacted, MACL Corporate Communications, General Manager Hassan Areef said bonuses were not awarded as the company failed to make profit targets. Areef went on to add the company’s cashflows for the past few years has been low due to covid and as such, had not given bonuses
Staff were given a salary increment of over MVR 3,000 (US$ 194.81) each, once covid slump had passed.
The ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict, he added, had also dampened cash flows, due to less arrivals.
“We will be giving bonuses, we have not made a decision not to award bonuses. It will be given based on the company status,” Areef said.
Areef had singled out covid and resultant economic depression as a cause for not awarding bonuses. However, bonuses were not awarded in 2019 – long before covid reached the country.
While bonuses are dependent on profits, MACL had not done so, even though the company reported millions in profits. In quarter four of 2021, MACL had reported over MVR 500 million (US$ 32.5 million) in operating profits alone.