Texas – A letter to the Texas Workforce Commission notes 2,760 temporary layoffs of union workers for the carrier. Another 488 employees would be “permanently discharged,” it said.
However, an American Airlines spokesman said those employees were already laid off last summer and were brought back with pay as part the government stimulus extension passed in December. Those workers, mostly in administrative positions, have not actually returned to work and CEO Doug Parker said that reductions to its management and support staff will be permanent.
“As a result of unforeseeable circumstances beyond the company’s control, specifically the COVID-19 pandemic, the company has carefully analyzed its available options, and it is with regret that I report to you that the company anticipates taking job actions,” the company said in its letter to the state.
American said the “furloughs are expected to be temporary.”
American may furlough fewer workers, but 13,000 had to be notified because of bumping rights and changes that could happen before the possible cuts on April 1. The layoffs only include workers at or near American’s headquarters in Fort Worth and at DFW International Airport, the carrier’s biggest hub.
American has also sent out furlough notices in states such as Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Florida and New York, according to workforce officials in those states. American anticipates furloughs for 1,032 workers in both Florida and Pennsylvania. American has large international hubs in both those states.
Some 781 workers are at risk of furlough in North Carolina, the home to American’s second-largest hub, in Charlotte. American sent a letter to the state of New York detailing 326 furloughs at JFK and LaGuardia airports.
Other states where American Airlines has a big presence, such as Illinois and Arizona, have not disclosed furlough warnings from the company.
