British Airways 'to suspend 36,000 staff due to the coronavirus-financial crisis
British Airways is expected to announce it will suspend around 36,000 staff as it battles to survive the coronavirus crisis.
The airline has reached a broad deal with the Unite union that will include the suspension of 80 percent of its cabin crew, ground staff, engineers and those working at head office.
Crucially however, no staff are expected to be made redundant as a result of the deal, which came after ten days of intense talks, according to the BBC.
On Tuesday, the airline axed all its flights to and from Gatwick Airport as COVID-19 continues to strangle the aviation industry.
The airline, which jets to Europe, America and the Caribbean from the West Sussex airport, has already mothballed many planes across its UK bases including London City Airport - but is still running from London Heathrow with a severely reduced schedule.
It is also among the airlines helping repatriate Britons stuck abroad following Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab's pledge to set aside £75 million to help get people home.
Staff affected are expected to receive some of their wages through the government job retention scheme - which offers 80 per cent of someone's average pay up to £2,500-a-month.
Those not furloughed, such as call centre staff and those involved in live operations, will remain on full pay following the talks.
A source told The Sun: 'Negotiations have been tough but there is an acknowledgement at BA and the union that these are unprecedented times.'
The agreement has yet to be fully signed off but it is thought this will happen early on Thursday morning. A spokesman for the airline told MailOnline: 'Talks continue.'
With future bookings cancelled for the time being, airlines such as British Airways have been losing vast sums of money.
A British Airways spokesman declined to say how many of its workers' jobs are under threat when asked earlier this week, but said: 'Due to the considerable restrictions and challenging market environment, like many other airlines we will temporarily suspend our flying schedule at Gatwick. We are contacting affected customers to discuss their options.'
Two weeks ago British Airways admitted coronavirus is threatening its very survival as staff were told there will be job cuts and aircrafts must be mothballed because of the 'worsening' worldwide pandemic.
Chief Executive Alex Cruz wrote to all 45,000 workers saying the virus' relentless spread is a crisis 'of global proportions like no other we have known', more serious than the 2008 financial crash, SARS or 9/11.
But chief executive of its parent company IAG, Willie Walsh, has also stressed that he had not requested a government bail-out and insisted IAG was 'resilient with a strong balance sheet', adding there is 'no guarantee that many European airlines would survive'.
The airline has reached a broad deal with the Unite union that will include the suspension of 80 percent of its cabin crew, ground staff, engineers and those working at head office.
Crucially however, no staff are expected to be made redundant as a result of the deal, which came after ten days of intense talks, according to the BBC.
On Tuesday, the airline axed all its flights to and from Gatwick Airport as COVID-19 continues to strangle the aviation industry.
The airline, which jets to Europe, America and the Caribbean from the West Sussex airport, has already mothballed many planes across its UK bases including London City Airport - but is still running from London Heathrow with a severely reduced schedule.
It is also among the airlines helping repatriate Britons stuck abroad following Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab's pledge to set aside £75 million to help get people home.
Staff affected are expected to receive some of their wages through the government job retention scheme - which offers 80 per cent of someone's average pay up to £2,500-a-month.
Those not furloughed, such as call centre staff and those involved in live operations, will remain on full pay following the talks.
A source told The Sun: 'Negotiations have been tough but there is an acknowledgement at BA and the union that these are unprecedented times.'
The agreement has yet to be fully signed off but it is thought this will happen early on Thursday morning. A spokesman for the airline told MailOnline: 'Talks continue.'
With future bookings cancelled for the time being, airlines such as British Airways have been losing vast sums of money.
A British Airways spokesman declined to say how many of its workers' jobs are under threat when asked earlier this week, but said: 'Due to the considerable restrictions and challenging market environment, like many other airlines we will temporarily suspend our flying schedule at Gatwick. We are contacting affected customers to discuss their options.'
Two weeks ago British Airways admitted coronavirus is threatening its very survival as staff were told there will be job cuts and aircrafts must be mothballed because of the 'worsening' worldwide pandemic.
Chief Executive Alex Cruz wrote to all 45,000 workers saying the virus' relentless spread is a crisis 'of global proportions like no other we have known', more serious than the 2008 financial crash, SARS or 9/11.
But chief executive of its parent company IAG, Willie Walsh, has also stressed that he had not requested a government bail-out and insisted IAG was 'resilient with a strong balance sheet', adding there is 'no guarantee that many European airlines would survive'.
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