Spirit Airlines says 20% to 30% of workers at risk of furloughs

FAN Editor

Spirit Airlines is preparing to inform unions on Friday that 20-30% of workers may be furloughed in October, an internal memo shows, becoming the first low-cost U.S. carrier to detail potential job cuts due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Continue Reading Below

Workers at risk of being furloughed include pilots and flight attendants, according to the memo seen by Reuters.

GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE

Spirit Airlines, the 7th largest U.S. carrier as of January, confirmed the memo was sent to employees on Tuesday but said it has no further comment.

“It’s now clear that the demand increase we saw in June was an outlier, and the downward trend will continue,” CEO Ted Christie says in the memo.

Ticker Security Last Change Change %
SAVE SPIRIT AIRLINES INC. 16.54 +0.39 +2.41%

The airline’s expected daily cash burn of more than $100 million each month, over the next several months, “is not sustainable,” he added.

SPIRIT AIRLINES PASSENGER REMOVED FROM FLIGHT FOR NOT WEARING MASK

Spirit is among the U.S. airlines that received a government bailout to keep workers employed through September as they suffer a sharp downturn in demand due to virus-related lockdowns and travel curbs. Now many are warning of furloughs once the stimulus package expires because demand has not yet recovered.

On a conference call last week, Christie said the company was still looking at ways to mitigate the need for involuntary action after Sept. 30.

UNITED TELLS TWO REGIONAL AIRLINES IT WILL CONTINUE CONTRACT WITH JUST ONE: UNION LETTER

“I think we’re still reading the game film, to be honest, because the summer has been up and down both sides, and we want to make sure that we digest all the information before we make a call,” Christie told investors after posting a wider-than-expected quarterly loss.

Some industry experts have, however, said airlines with lower cost structures and single fleet types like Spirit could weather the pandemic better than U.S. majors.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ON FOX BUSINESS

While large carriers American Airlines and United Airlines have warned that more than 60,000 jobs are at risk between the two in the fall, low-cost carriers Southwest Airlines and JetBlue Airways have said they think they can avoid furloughs for the time being.

(Reporting by Tracy Rucinski and David Shepardson; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman and Himani Sarkar)

Free America Network Articles

Leave a Reply

Next Post

Joe Biden says he's the "antithesis" of President Trump

Joe Biden revealed more of his plan to tackle economic inequality at a campaign event in Wilmington, Delaware. While answering questions from reporters, Biden said he is the “antithesis” of President Trump. CBS News political correspondent Ed O’Keefe joins Elaine Quijano for a closer look at his campaign. Free America […]