Rex's Financial Crisis Leaves 360 Sacked Employees Without Wages Or Redundancy Payouts

As Regional Express Holdings Limited (Rex) went into administration, close to 360 sacked employees were told that they would not receive their wages or redundancy payouts for "months."

Consultancy firm Ernst & Young informed the staff on Wednesday that due to the financial crisis, another 250 jobs would be axed and that they would have to wait till a new buyer was found to get paid, ABC News reported.

"Put simply, I guess the company is unable to meet the costs that it will need to incur to keep operating. With the business not operating and unlikely, almost certainly, not able to recommence operations in the future, it's unfortunately the administrators view that the position of each of the staff of the company on this call needs to become redundant," administrator Justin Walsh told the Rex staff.

The airlines had canceled all flights to major cities, but continued operations in rural Australia. Rex had also suspended share trading on Monday.

Rex staff told ABC about being blindsided as they received information about the company going into administration from media reports. The staff said they were frustrated by the lack of communication from the company, which they said was a bigger issue.

While 20 staff members said they were turned away from hotels in Brisbane and Melbourne on Tuesday, crew members in Adelaide and Sydney were unaffected.

Since Rex halted Boeing 737 flights between Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, 360 jobs have become redundant, The Guardian reported. A final report on the redundancies is expected in 24-48 hours. The company employs nearly 2,000 people.

Transport Workers Union (TWU) national secretary Michael Kaine called it "another dark day for aviation, with over 600 families faced with sudden joblessness in an industry that has taken hit after hit."

The administrators have assured that the fleet of 36-seater Saab 340 turboprop aircraft, which operates in the rural areas, will continue its services.

As politicians urged the Anthony Albanese government to bail out the regional carrier, the government hinted it may consider investment in the airlines, as suggested by TWU and Greens.