PLANE FAIL-ING
British Airways to axe jobs in ‘fight for survival’ as coronavirus impact feared ‘more serious than SARS and 9/11’
BRITISH Airways will ground aircraft and lay off staff in a "fight for survival" as the airline's boss branded the fallout from coronavirus "more serious" than the SARS outbreak and 9/11.
Chief exec Alex Cruz warned staff that COVID-19 had caused a "crisis of global proportions" in an extraordinary recorded message to staff leaked to The Sun.
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"Please do not underestimate the seriousness of this for our company," he said. Mr Cruz added: "We can no longer sustain our current level of employment and jobs will be lost - perhaps for a short period, perhaps longer term."
BA's fears were revealed as Europe's airports predicted 187million fewer passengers will fly in 2020 compared to last year due to coronavirus.
It will mean a decrease of 7.5 per cent compared with last year, as opposed to a predicted growth of 2.3 per cent.
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The airline, which employs 45,000 people, is among those that has cancelled hundreds of flights to affected countries, such as Italy.
EasyJet and Ryanair have also cancelled flights.
It's struggling under the pressure of government travel bans, the suspension of business travel by corporate clients, and cancellation of global conferences and events.
The Foreign Commonwealth Office (FCO) has restricted travel to countries including Italy, Spain, China and Thailand.
Thousands of passengers are also ditching their holidays for fear of catching and spreading the virus.
Flybe has even called in administrators as passengers ditch flying in favour of staying at home, meanwhile Thomas Cook went bust last year.
Mr Cruz said: "Some of us have worked in aviation through the global financial crisis, the SARS outbreak and 9/11.
Your rights if you're made redundant
IF you're being made redundant, you may be eligible for the below, according to GOV.UK.
- Redundancy pay: If you've been working for your current employer for at least two years, you're usually entitled to a statutory redundancy pay.
- A notice period: According to redundancy law, you’re entitled to a minimum notice period of 12 weeks’ if employed for 12 years or more, at least one week’s notice if you have been employed between one month and two years, or one week’s notice for each year if employed between two and 12 years. If your employer doesn’t want you to work your notice period they can offer you a lump sum instead.
- A consultation with your employer: Employers always have to consult with employees before dismissing them on the grounds of redundancy. In short, your employer must tell you what’s going on and give you a chance to ask questions and raise objections.
- The option to move into a different job: Your employer might offer you "suitable alternative employment" within your organisation or an associated company. Keep in mind that you may lose your right to statutory redundancy pay if you unreasonably turn it down.
- Time off to find a new job: If you’ve been continuously employed for two years, you could be given a reasonable amount of time off to look for another job or to arrange training to help you find another job.
"What is happening right now as a result of Covid-19 is more serious than any of these events. It is a crisis of global proportions like no other we have known.
"The scale of the challenge demands we pull together as a team, put all non-critical issues to one side, and focus our energy on making it through these troubled times."
Mr Cruz warned that airlines with a weak balance sheet, or carrying large debts, are facing a dire future.
He says British Airways has a "robust balance sheet", although he went on: "But we are under immense pressure.
"We will have to react fast and definitively in response to the worsening situation."
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Mr Cruz, chief executive and chairman of BA, said the firm was suspending routes and parking aircraft "in a way that we have never had to before".
He said he was taking "decisive steps to protect our cash position and to protect jobs".
British Airways did not wish to add any further comment.
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