MAS and the trap!

It's started! On 5th Aug, MAS announced a new scheme to so called reduce it's financial burden. It's a fact that nearly all the major airlines on the planet is hard hit by the rising cost of fuel. The U.S carriers are on the verge of bankruptcy. The european's carriers are doing fairly thanks to the high value of the euro. MAS is fortunate as it is a GLC and the government if forking in the cash. So it seems.

The fact is, even though the government through Khazanah Nasional owns MAS, MAS itself is divided into two seperate entities. One is operational and the other is material. MAS is only the operational entity. A GLC and it simply operates. Khazanah Nasional owns the material part i.e aircrafts and buildings and has direct control over them. The general public, not all, are totally ignorant of this fact. Whatever happens, MAS will be blamed. It's management and workers will take the brunt of public anger if anything bad were to happen. Just like the fact that the MAS building in downtown Kuala Lumpur was sold. It was Khazanah decision. MAS has no choice but to concour. Someone was to make lots of money in this deal. To own a building right in the middle of downtown KL is somewhat a dream come true for major corporations. The building itself symbolize the corporate strengh of the company. MAS building symbolizes that for MAS. Now it is no more. Just the same as in aircraft. The corporate restructure that was undertaken by MAS, was in fact the seperation of the company itself. MAS was stripped of it's properties. Another example, MASkargo bought two brand new Boeing 747 cargo freighters and it was in full operation, flying and making revenue. This two aircraft was taken over by Khazanah and later on sold to a japanese firm and lease back to MASkargo for used. Again, someone made money out of this deal.

Back to subject, MAS has announced plans to lessen the financial burden of the company. As all of you may know, major airlines around the world, as of the first quater of 2008, has been laying off workers and cutting operations. MAS is now going to take that route as well although a different kind of style. It plans to give 'voluntary without pay leave' or 'voluntary part time' options to it's workers. All of this is a trap! It's a trial and eror approch. The management just want to test how many people would be willing to take 'without pay' and 'part time' options. It's encouraging it's staff to choose between this two options. The management even gives guarantees that whoever takes the options, will not be retrench. This is a trap. Anybody who takes either one of the options given risk their jobs. If anything was to happen, any dicision to be made later on, what would you think will happen to people who has taken these options. If it is decided that the 'company' cannot sustain the impact of the high cost of fuel and has to lay off workers, these people who has taken the 'options' will be the first to be retrench!

We all know that MAS is not actually calling the shots. Khazanah is. MAS is a family oriented company. I mean, it is practically very sosial conscience. It wont lay off workers. Throughout history of the company, it has never lay off workers. It gives VSS once but that is all. Lots of people doesn't know that Khazanah made lots of bad dicision regarding MAS. The only way to make as though MAS made profit was to sell it's properties. Which it does regularly in terms of selling and purchasing aircraft.This is how MAS could sustain it's business and keep all it's workers. Now MAS has no control over that. Khazanah does that now. There are crooks in Khazanah that is making money out of selling,puchasing and leasing aircraft and other properties. This is what i mean by bad dicisions by Khazanah. MAS has to pay the price. The public will say that MAS has failed. But the reality is, MAS did not fail, it simply has no control over it's assets and final dicision making. The final dicision is made by people in Khazanah. People which is not even in MAS and has no knowledge in the aviation industry.

To those who works for MAS. Do not take the offer. It's a TRAP! Better to have VSS than to find out that you have been retrench with little to no benefits.

Note: Look before you leap!