SINGAPORE's Pacific International Lines (PIL) has laid off an undisclosed number of workers in Singapore amid a push for greater automation within the firm, reports Singapore's Straits Times.
The restructuring impacted resource requirements at PIL's shipping agencies globally. As such, a relatively small percentage of the total workforce in Singapore was affected, a PIL spokesman said.
There will also be no impact to business activities at the shipping line's Singapore head office.
PIL is working with its union, the Supply Chain Employees' Union Singapore (SCEU), to support laid-off workers, the spokesman said. The SCEU is an affiliate of the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC).
He noted that affected employees are being offered 'enhanced' packages, including outplacement services, training grants, extended medical coverage and a projected bonus payout for 2025.
The lay-offs took place amid a move by PIL to adopt artificial intelligence-driven technologies to boost its efficiency and global competitiveness, for which it had also added more than 30 per cent to its Singapore workforce.
Mr Mohd Fahmi Aliman, executive secretary of the SCEU, said that PIL provided the union with reasonable notice, ensuring that it had sufficient time to work together with the company to negotiate retrenchment packages for the impacted employees and render assistance to them.
PIL's job cuts also come after the firm rolled out a US$2 billion plan in 2022 to replace part of its fleet with 13 dual-fuel container ships that can run on both liquefied natural gas and conventional marine fuel.
The first two ships were delivered in Shanghai in October and are currently two of the biggest in PIL's fleet, with the capacity to move 14,000 containers each.
Earlier in November, PIL announced an order for five more dual-fuel container ships, set for delivery between 2027 and 2028. This brings its total newbuild orders since 2022 to 18.
In June, the firm established an academy to provide customised training for employees and new hires.
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The restructuring impacted resource requirements at PIL's shipping agencies globally. As such, a relatively small percentage of the total workforce in Singapore was affected, a PIL spokesman said.
There will also be no impact to business activities at the shipping line's Singapore head office.
PIL is working with its union, the Supply Chain Employees' Union Singapore (SCEU), to support laid-off workers, the spokesman said. The SCEU is an affiliate of the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC).
He noted that affected employees are being offered 'enhanced' packages, including outplacement services, training grants, extended medical coverage and a projected bonus payout for 2025.
The lay-offs took place amid a move by PIL to adopt artificial intelligence-driven technologies to boost its efficiency and global competitiveness, for which it had also added more than 30 per cent to its Singapore workforce.
Mr Mohd Fahmi Aliman, executive secretary of the SCEU, said that PIL provided the union with reasonable notice, ensuring that it had sufficient time to work together with the company to negotiate retrenchment packages for the impacted employees and render assistance to them.
PIL's job cuts also come after the firm rolled out a US$2 billion plan in 2022 to replace part of its fleet with 13 dual-fuel container ships that can run on both liquefied natural gas and conventional marine fuel.
The first two ships were delivered in Shanghai in October and are currently two of the biggest in PIL's fleet, with the capacity to move 14,000 containers each.
Earlier in November, PIL announced an order for five more dual-fuel container ships, set for delivery between 2027 and 2028. This brings its total newbuild orders since 2022 to 18.
In June, the firm established an academy to provide customised training for employees and new hires.
SeaNews Turkey
