We have to smile: Kingfisher Air staff

Bills to pay without salary,its difficult to carry on as if nothing is wrong,team members say.

When Sapna*,now 24,joined Kingfisher Airlines in 2008,the airline was at the height of its success story,its passengers booming and popularity rising. The initial days were great. Work was fun and there was nothing better than working for Kingfisher, says Sapna,born and raised in Shimla,and who moved to a metropolis to work on both the domestic and international sectors.

Today,Sapna,among the many whose salaries remain unpaid,is a picture of disillusionment. I was last paid on December 30, says Sapna,who has quit and is about to join another airline. I need money for expenses; there are bills to be paid. The Kingfisher management has been maintaining we will be paid soon,but we do not know whether to believe them. Living in a city,I have to pay rent.

Shilpa*,24,of Mumbai finds it demotivating that she has to report to work day after day knowing that dues for the past four months are pending. I have worked with Kingfisher for three years. People say money is not everything,but you have to pay for expenses. How can someone work when they know that they have not been paid for their services?

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Shilpa had joined the airline after graduating from the finance sector. When I joined,Kingfisher was one of the best places to work at. Now,working without getting paid affects us mentally. Acting as if everything is all right when nothing is,is very difficult, she says.

Even smiling at guests aboard an aircraft takes courage,she says. Guests ask us about the situation and we reveal nothing, she says. But we are not here for charity. There is a limit to everything. There are many who are the sole earning members at home. How will they be able to meet their expenses? What about people who come to the cities from smaller towns and have no family there?

Rahul*,26,a crew member on the Mumbai sector,reveals that even pickups for transportation has been stopped for the past two months.

Travel is very difficult. We are not being provided transport and have been asked to make arrangements. The management has told us we will be reimbursed,but believing them is difficult. If someone is not able to pay your salary,will they go out of their way to pay for your transport? he says.

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He says the general feeling among employees is that the merger with the former Air Deccan,now Kingfisher Red,proved the Achilles heel for the airline. Most employees feel the deal is costing us our salary, he says.

He says the management has not been very forthcoming about paying the dues. Earlier,we got emails every week from the chairman that said that they were doing the best they could. Now,the emails have stopped, he says. We have to ask the pilots what is happening; communication from the management is bad. Sometimes,we have to read the newspapers for the latest news. Concentrating on work is very difficult and to make matters worse I have to smile at guests even though I am not happy.

Relatives of pilots,too,present the same gloomy picture. Puja*,38,says repaying loans and meeting needs take their toll on her husband. He is a senior pilot. After he joined Kingfisher,we bought a house in western Mumbai and had to take a loan. Repaying the loan is becoming difficult. There is no income right now and expenses are very high. We need to pay nearly Rs 3 lakh a month on the loan, Puja says.

We have two children,both under 10. My son had his birthday recently and there was little we could do to celebrate.

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Says Sapna: The outside world sees this profession as glamorous. But for me,the saying all that glitters is not gold holds true.

*In both reports,names have been changed to protect identities