FIGHT OR FLIGHT
Virgin Atlantic to cut 3,150 jobs as Sir Richard Branson tries to stop airline going bust in coronavirus crisis
MORE than 3,000 jobs at the Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Holidays travel brands owned by billionaire Richard Branson are to be axed.
In total, 3,150 roles are to be lost across all departments at the companies with a 45-day consultation period now beginning with staff.
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Virgin is also axing 15 per cent of its Virgin Holiday stores on the high street. It couldn't tell us how many this means in reality but given it has 58 branches that could mean eight to nine closing.
It follows similar moves across the travel industry with British Airways cutting 12,000 jobs and Ryanair ditching 3,000 roles.
The companies are the latest casualties of the coronavirus crisis, which has crippled the travel industry, with a third of UK staff set to lose their jobs.
But the move from Virgin follows intense criticism from the public over decisions to initially place staff on unpaid leave, before later furloughing over 80 per cent of the workforce, with some calling for owner Mr Branson to sell his private Caribbean island to fund salaries.
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In an open letter to staff, Mr Branson had warned the airline could fall into administration without a government bailout, adding that he was prepared to put Necker Island up as collateral to save the business.
It follows the fall of Virgin Australia into administration after being refused a bailout from the Australian government.
Mr Branson was, however, again slammed for asking for taxpayer funding, and has instead reportedly been seeking private investment instead.
The Virgin Group says it's now working with the BALPA and Unite unions on the redundancies.
As part of the measures, Virgin is also temporarily scrapping its London Gatwick routes as the airline scales back to survive the pandemic.
Flights will instead go from London Heathrow, although Virgin says it will retain its Gatwick slot so it can reopen there when demand improves.
How coronavirus has crippled the travel industry
HERE'S how coronavirus has hit major travel operators:
- British Airways has suspended all routes from London Gatwick and London City airports, and has moved all operations into terminal 5 at London Heathrow.
The airline is currently operating just one in ten of its usual flights.
On April 28, BA’s parent company IAG said it was preparing to cut 12,000 jobs from the airline’s 42,000-strong workforce.
Reports on April 30 suggest a quarter of pilot roles could be included in this number. - easyJet has grounded its entire fleet of 330 aircraft and cancelled all flights.
The airline hasn’t said when it will start flying again but its staff are currently being given a two-month leave of absence, meaning the measures will last at least until June. - Flybe collapsed into administration on March 5.
The airline had been losing money for several months, with it narrowly avoiding going under in January 2020, but coronavirus was understood to have had a severe impact on bookings. - Jet2 has cancelled all flights and holiday packages until June 17.
The airline is expected to start flying again from the middle of June.
However, this could change depending on the lockdown situation. - Ryanair has grounded 99 per cent of its fleet due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Remaining flights are operating on an emergency schedule only for passengers trying to return to the UK.
The airline has announced it could cut 3,000 jobs as part of a restructuring plan. - TUI has suspended all package holidays and cruises due to the crisis.
All trips have been cancelled until June 11, while Marella Cruise holidays won't resume until July.
The dates could be extended again depending on government advice. - Virgin Atlantic has suspended all flights, with no word on when it'll start flying again.
Virgin Group owner Richard Branson has asked the government for a bailout to keep the airline going, as well as private investors. But 3,150 staff also face the axe.
It follows the fall of Virgin Australia into administration after being refused a bailout from the Australian government. - Wizz Air had grounded the majority of its flights, with limited routes to Hungary, Bulgaria and Poland.
However, the airline has today resumed some routes from London Luton Airport.
Destinations include Hungary, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Portugal, Spain and Israel.
Virgin has also used the announcement to reveal a rebrand of Virgin Holidays, which will now become Virgin Atlantic Holidays.
Coronavirus has severely impacted the travel industry leaving millions of flights grounded as the UK government has warned people against all but essential travel from the UK.
British Airways' boss, Alex Cruz, said he feared the impact could be "more serious than SARS and 9/11".
The UK carrier is now battling to put remaining staff onto new "zero hour" contracts.
More on Virgin Atlantic
Meanwhile for the full year ahead, ending March 2021, Ryanair expects to carry less than 100million passengers - more than 35 per cent below its original 154million target.
Shai Weiss, chief executive at Virgin Atlantic said: “We have weathered many storms since our first flight 36 years ago, but none has been as devastating as Covid-19 and the associated loss of life and livelihood for so many.
"It is crucial that we return to profitability in 2021. This will mean taking steps to reshape and resize Virgin Atlantic in line with demand, while always keeping our people and customers at the heart of all we do."
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