20,000 MAS employees in limbo

Twenty thousand people working for Malaysian Airlines, a government-linked company, are unsure of their job security. According to reports, about two-thirds of the 20,000 staff will be offered jobs with new conditions while the rest will have to leave immediately but will receive their salary and benefits by end of August.

MAS is undergoing restructuring with business focus shifting from international to regional. The termination will help ease the migration of MAS into a new company, MAS Bhd, which will begin operation on 1 September.

No GLC in Malaysia has ever been sacked nearly everyone and this could well be the most number of people ever sacked in one day in Malaysia.

However, this is the airline company's last-ditch effort to settle its debts including the twin tragedies of MH370 and MH17.

Says one staff member, "no jobs are safe but some people obviously are."

The only person spared is chief executive Christoph Mueller, who was hired to lead the new airline but was then roped in to manage the transition. MAS has also roped in all members of its management team to be counselors and more will be trained this week to talk to the staff, especially those who will be axed.