Yahoo News Cathay Pacific slashes 6,000 jobs
Cathay Pacific will cut 6,000 jobs and close its budget Cathay Dragon brand as part of a strategic review to combat the deep damage caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
The Hong Kong-based airline is expected to confirm the plan after the market closed on Wednesday, the South China Morning Post reported.
Cathay initially planned about 8,000 layoffs globally, but after government intervention reduced that to 18pc of its workforce, including some 5,000 jobs in Hong Kong, the report said.
The company, which posted a HK$9.9bn (£1bn) loss in the first half of the year, has for months been working on the review that management presented to the board on Monday.
Cathay said in September it would not survive unless it adapted its airlines for the “new travel market”.
The company did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Cathay’s passenger traffic slumped as travel restrictions escalated and people refrained from flying, with numbers as low as 500 a day in April and May.
On Monday it said it expected to operate at about 10pc of pre-pandemic capacity for the rest of the year and well below a quarter in the first half of 2021.
Passenger numbers in September were 98pc lower than the same month last year.
