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MANILA, Oct 5 (Reuters) – Philippine Airlines Inc (PAL) said on Monday it is cutting up to a third of its workforce, or around 2,700 jobs, as the aviation sector continues to suffer from push-driven travel restrictions. for the pandemic.
The Southeast Asian nation’s carriers, which halted operations in mid-March when President Rodrigo Duterte imposed one of the most stringent and longest-running coronavirus lockdowns in the world, are slowly increasing their operations.
“The collapse in travel demand and persistent travel restrictions on most domestic and international routes have made cost reduction inevitable,” PAL said in a statement.
This quarter’s staff reduction program could cover up to 35% of its approximately 7,800 employees, it added.
PAL is running less than 15% of its normal number of daily flights eight months after the Philippine government imposed travel restrictions.
The losing carrier, partly owned by Japan’s ANA Holdings Inc, lost roughly $ 1 billion in revenue between March and May when the company suspended operations due to a travel ban.
The Philippines has 324,762 confirmed COVID-19 infections, the highest number in Southeast Asia. (Reporting by Neil Jerome Morales; Editing by Susan Fenton)
