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Summary
- Airbus proposed plans to shorten its workweek by 10 per cent to save jobs in its Broughton plant.
- The company had announced layoffs of 15,000 workers worldwide last year to manage losses from the coronavirus-hit sector.
- The news follows on the back of Ryanair’s dismal quarterly results announced on Monday.
Aircraft manufacturer Airbus today unveiled its plans to shorten its working week to save jobs from its Broughton plant. The move follows Airbus’s plans to slash 1,435 jobs in Flintshire, Wales, announced in 2020 and a cumulative 15,000 jobs globally due to pandemic-induced losses in the airline industry.
The company’s Broughton plant had already lost about 1,000 jobs through voluntary redundancies of its 6,000 workers and approximately 450 contract workers in its production and production support areas. About 3,200 have already been placed in furlough schemes, but the factory faces an additional redundancy of 350 to 400 jobs.
During its ongoing talks with trade union Unite, Airbus revealed that it is working on a new roadmap to reduce working hours by 10 per cent implying that its five-day work week would now be reduced by half a day, thus saving potential layoffs. The company had also agreed to meet a third of the shortfall for the lost hours.
If the proposal passes the trade union’s ballot process, the aircraft maker will be able to save up to 400 jobs in the plant. Senior trade union representatives at Unite said if the workforce accepted the terms, it would protect further job losses and offer a way out of the current crisis further urging the crew to vote in favour of the proposal.
Officials at the Welsh plant said they were delighted the proposal was being viewed positively by trade union representatives. The move is being touted as a favourable short-term measure which will protect highly-skilled jobs and apprentice workers. The ballot results are expected to be announced in the coming days.
The European aircraft manufacturer was reportedly bleeding cash in June 2020 amid the height of pandemic woes. In 2020, the airline maker had announced plans of laying off 5,000 workers in France, 5,100 in Germany, 900 in Spain, 1,700 in the UK and 1,300 in other countries by the middle of 2021. According to recent guidance, the production is expected to be lower by 40 per cent in 2021 and 2022 the following year.
The news follows low-cost carrier Ryanair’s (LON: RYA) declared in its latest quarterly earnings that it suffered a €306 million loss and witnessed a decline in passengers carried by 78 per cent to eight million in the last quarter of 2020.
Also Read: Ryanair (LON:RYA) Sinks into Losses in Q3 2021
Industry leaders have said the aviation sector in the UK needs more government support to survive another period of travel restriction, which will exacerbate a deepening financial crisis. The International Air Transport Association estimates an additional cash infusion of USD 70 to 80 billion (GBP 52 to 59 billion) would be required to overcome the coronavirus crisis-hit sector.
