American airline giant United Airlines is warning that half of its workforce could be laid off as the coronavirus has hit passenger numbers hard.
The Wall Street Journal reports.
The potential halving of the workforce will then take effect from October 1. According to the newspaper, the airline notified 36,000 of its employees – which corresponds to half the workforce – about the potential measures on Wednesday morning.
The airline is losing about $40 million a day, a source told the WSJ. The source, who holds a senior position at the airline, also told the newspaper that the company cannot count on further government support to cover its payroll costs after October 1.
United Airlines thus becomes the first of the US airline giants to warn of layoffs, despite the company having received government subsidies that cover payroll costs until the end of September.
The American airline giant is part of the Star Alliance airline alliance – which also includes Sweden's SAS. The Swedish airline announced in mid-March that it would lay off 10,000 employees – equivalent to 90 percent of its workforce.
