Overcoming Challenges in the Aviation Industry to Tide over the Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic has undoubtedly affected businesses in many sectors. With the travel restrictions to curb the transmission of the virus, one industry that is severely impacted is our aviation industry. Changi Airport reported a 32.8% decline in passenger movements in February 2020, and major airlines have been suspending and slashing flight capacity since March 2020, affecting their profitability and sustainability in the industry.

In light of the extended downtime, how has the industry grappled with the downtime and ensured workers remain productive?

Commitment to Upskill Workers

Leaders from major firms in Singapore’s aviation sector have committed to sending their workers to fill up more than 17,400 training places during a closed-door dialogue hosted by NTUC Secretary-General (SG) Ng Chee Meng on 3 April 2020.

For instance, Scoot has registered 75% of its total workforce for training with NTUC LearningHub (NTUC LHUB). 1,900 flight crew and cabin crew will be enrolled into digital awareness courses in the following months, to help participants develop awareness on emerging technologies and build self-confidence in leveraging technology in their line of work.

As the nation gets propelled into a digital transformation fuelled by the extensive reliance on technology to stay connected and productive amid Covid-19, the aviation industry recognised a need to train workers, including PMEs, to accelerate digital adoption across all levels.

Apart from courses to build technology skills, other courses to build adaptive and technical skills will be launched – this includes change management, project management, service excellence related courses and technical training. For example, cabin crew could undergo courses to upgrade their skills in the areas of frontline service while pilots could benefit from training in areas such as managing fatigue. For others, training will be made available in areas such as handling of dangerous goods, cargo documentation, aircraft maintenance amongst others.

These efforts will translate to more than 39,500 training days!

Securing Jobs for Workers

The grounding of flights will inevitably cause aviation staff to be idle during this period. Apart from training, there are also ongoing efforts to help affected workers secure temporary assignments and augment their income. The NTUC Aerospace and Aviation Cluster is tapping on the wider union and Labour Movement network to aggregate manpower needs identified by unionised companies, and work with companies’ human resources personnel to deploy workers for vacant roles. Over 500 aviation workers have been referred for temporary assignments such as Safe Distancing Ambassadors, Safety Management Personnel, SG Clean Ambassadors, and more.

Inspiring Other Industries

NTUC LHUB has been rapidly ramping up our training capacity to meet demands from various sectors, and we believe that upskilling is even more important in times of change. It is gratifying for us at NTUC LHUB to cross path with many employers and employees who remain positive amid challenging times – taking this opportunity to transform and enrich their workforce.

If you are a business leader looking to emerge stronger in a post-pandemic environment, our team is here to curate a series of courses that fit your industry and employees. When the storm clears, our companies and workers can be better positioned to exploit all the opportunities that the world will show us again.