Nov. 2—NEW DELHI — NEW DELHI: SpiceJet Ltd's engineering staff, who on Monday went on strike seeking restoration of salaries and leaves, have called off their protest after assurance from the airline's management that their concerns will be addressed in a week's time, two people with direct knowledge of the matter told Mint on Tuesday.
The protests have been called off for time being as the management has assured the engineering staff that their concerns will be addressed by 8-9 November, one of the persons mentioned above said, requesting anonymity.
"We are hoping that the salaries are restored to pre covid levels as the aviation sector is returning back to normalcy," the person added.
SpiceJet engineering staff had on Monday started the protest in New Delhi, which then spread to Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Pune, among others.
When contacted a SpiceJet spokesperson said the issue (protest) has been resolved. " SpiceJet's operations remained normal throughout (Tuesday)," the spokesperson said without elaborating further.
Meanwhile, rating agency Crisil on Tuesday said it has withdrawn its credit ratings on SpiceJet's bank facilities aggregating to INR1,225 crore stating that the airline has been non-cooperative.
"CRISIL Ratings has been consistently following up with SpiceJet Limited ( SpiceJet) for obtaining information through letters and emails dated August 18, 2021, September 01, 2021, October 09, 2021 and October 14, 2021 among others, apart from telephonic communication. However, the issuer has remained non cooperative," the rating agency said in a statement.
"The investors, lenders and all other market participants should exercise due caution with reference to the rating assigned/reviewed with the suffix 'ISSUER NOT COOPERATING' as the rating is arrived at without any management interaction and is based on best available or limited or dated information on the company. Such non-co-operation by a rated entity may be a result of deterioration in its credit risk profile," it added.
The protest by staff for restoration of salaries and leaves and the withdrawal of the ratings of the airline's bank facilities come at a time when the no-frills airline's mounting losses have resulted in a complete erosion of the airline's net worth with its current liabilities exceeding its current assets by INR6,044.91 crore as of 30 June 2021, according to the airline's auditors Walker Chandiok & Co LLP.
SpiceJet reported its sixth consecutive quarterly loss at INR731.12 crore during the three-month period that ended on 30 June.
The cash-strapped carrier's plans to transfer its cargo and logistics services business to its subsidiary, SpiceXpress and Logistics Pvt. Ltd (SpiceXpress), which will result in a one-time gain of INR2,555.77 crore for the airline, is also on hold due to an interim order by the Delhi High Court.
This was after one of SpiceJet's lessors Goshawk and its trustee, Wilmington Trust SP Services Dublin Ltd, filed an injunction in September against the carrier transferring its assets to a separate company until it cleared dues on lease rentals for three aircraft.
"Like all airlines, SpiceJet has been adversely impacted by the ongoing pandemic. However, unlike an IndiGo, SpiceJet's options to raise capital is limited," said an industry expert, who spoke under condition of anonymity.
"On the bright side, passenger traffic is seen to be reviving (to pre-covid levels) which is evident from the festive season bookings. This will bring in much needed cash for the company," the person added.
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