More airline employees are signing up for buyouts, leaves of absence and early retirements as the threat of furloughs looms this summer amid the Covid-19 crisis.
Close to 17,000 employees or about 28% of Southwest Airlines’ workforce has signed up for partially paid extended leaves of absence or outright buyouts, the company’s CEO, Gary Kelly, told employees Monday. Nearly 4,400 put their hands up for buyouts while close to 12,500 expressed interest in extended time off, Kelly said in a staff memo seen by CNBC.
Airline executives have urged employees to take unpaid or partially paid time off to cut costs. The terms of $25 billion in federal aid prohibit carriers from furloughing or laying off workers until Oct. 1, though unions are pushing for billions more in aid to protect their jobs through the end of March 2021. The approaching expiration of the current round of aid means airline employees have to weigh potential furloughs against buyouts that include severance and an extension of health-care benefits.
Click here to read the rest of the article written by Diana Olick over at CNBC
