In KLM’s 2022-2023 collective labor agreements, it was agreed with the ground, cabin and cockpit crew that they would receive a “one-time payment once the government loan and credit facility is terminated”. KLM previously repaid the loan and terminated the credit facility on April 18, 2023 by obtaining a new loan with fourteen banks.
According to the speaker, the benefit is paid “with May’s salary”. May is the month in which KLM employees can add to their vacation pay. There is another bonus on top of that. The amount depends on what someone has earned. For high earners, the amount can run into thousands of euros.
Terms of assistance
correct. The government has made granting of assistance conditional on KLM employees making a contribution in the form of wage moderation. The starting point was that stronger shoulders would bear the heavier load: lower-paid (often ground) employees had to concede in percentage terms less than higher-paid (often flying) employees.
For example, pilots will lose about 20 percent of their paychecks and low-paid earners will lose even less. The bonus is now calculated by looking at exactly how much someone lost in salary during the period KLM was in state distillation. 20 percent of what was delivered will be paid as a one-time payment in May.
Controversial profit sharing
This means that KLM employees can once again look forward to more. In April, I already received the dividend for 2022. This amounted to 8 percent of the annual salary, according to the calculations of RTL Z.
This bonus is controversial, because the state agent has previously ruled that KLM violated the conditions associated with state aid by paying dividends to employees. The State Agent has been appointed by the Ministry of Finance specifically to ensure that KLM adheres to these terms.
Earlier this year, the State Attorney noted that May’s “special benefit” was counterproductive. KLM should actually save on payroll costs, but it just doesn’t happen enough.
The contribution of the pilots “is well below the commitments made for the billion-dollar aid” and the contribution of “the highest-paid cabin and ground workers falls well short of the obligations to the government”, even “taking into account high inflation.”
Tens of millions
When asked, KLM did not say how much was included in the “one-time payment” in May. But it seems more likely that it concerns tens of millions. Soon the pilot, who had to pay 20 percent of his salary for two years, lost 60,000 euros. He will now get 20 percent of that – €12,000.
Based on 3,500 pilots, KLM will soon lose 42 million euros, just for the pilots. KLM employed more than 28,000 people at the end of December 2022, compared to 26,000 the previous year.