The Hague (AFP)
Dutch airline KLM (air France-KLM group) announced Friday that it will cut up to 2,000 jobs to deal with the impact of the pandemic caused by the new coronavirus, among other cost-cutting measures .
KLM managing director Pieter Elbers said the company, which employs around 33,000 people, would also reduce the working hours of its employees and immobilize its Boeing 747s from April 1.
"In the coming months we will cut 1,500 to 2,000 jobs, which means that not only in the coming weeks, but also in the coming months, we will have fewer colleagues," said Elbers in a statement. video message posted on the company's website.
He specified that these measures would primarily concern part-time employees, those close to retirement and natural departures.
"We think this is the right thing to do to avoid other restrictive measures," he added.
The Dutch company, which merged Air France in 2004, had predicted a fall in the number of its flights by 20% in March and 30% in April when it had suspended its connections to China and Italy, the Asian epicenters. and European pandemic.
Last month, the Air France-KLM group estimated the cost of the pandemic at 150/200 million euros in April.
"A lot has happened in the past few days," said Elbers, with more than 140,720 infections worldwide and 5,347 deaths in 124 countries and territories.
© 2020 AFP