Brussels Airlines is taking drastic measures for a sustainable future. Make layoffs and reduce the fleet.
The COVID-19 pandemic hit aviation and tourism hard. In recent months, we have informed you and published hundreds of articles about the devastation caused by the new coronavirus. Tens of thousands of planes were parked on the ground, hundreds of airlines and thousands of travel agencies are struggling for survival. Billions of people have been stranded in their homes as a result of drastic measures taken by authorities around the world.
And the bad news doesn't stop there. Airlines, in turn, have to take drastic measures for a sustainable future. Airlines are planning massive layoffs in the coming months.
Even Brussels Airlines is taking tough measures to ensure a sustainable future. The negative impact of the coronavirus crisis on the company's budget and the very low demand for flights are forcing Brussels Airlines to take drastic and indispensable measures to ensure the company's survival.
The main measures taken by Brussels Airlines:
- Review the operational network by focusing on market demand and optimizing route profitability.
- Fleet adaptation according to network optimization: from 54 to 38 aircraft (-30%).
- Reducing staff costs by reducing the number of employees by 25%.
- Reducing operational costs and increasing operational efficiency, among other things, by improving productivity and standardizing the fleet.
Brussels Airlines is looking for solutions to avoid forced redundancies. Those in charge of the labor force must look for alternative solutions through which to reduce the number of employees: seasonal contracts, retirement of those with this right, review of part-time contracts, unpaid leave or even volunteers who want to leave the company.
In parallel with the implementation of drastic measures to revitalize the company, Brussels Airlines is in parallel discussions with the Belgian authorities on the financial support needed to overcome the crisis caused by COVID-19.