Seoul (AFP)
South Korean airline South Korean has announced the layoff of 70% of its 19,000 employees due to the crisis linked to the coronavirus pandemic which is severely affecting air transport.
Many international airlines have been forced to ground almost all of their fleets to the ground due to the traffic restrictions associated with the Covid-19.
This sector is one of the hardest hit by the financial crisis linked to the new coronavirus.
Korean Air, one of the largest airlines in the world, is the flagship of the Hanjin group, one of the largest family conglomerates, called "chaebols", which dominate the South Korean economy, the 12th in the world.
The majority of its staff will be on leave for six months starting April 16 in response to "deteriorating business conditions," Korean Air said in a statement.
As is customary in South Korea, employees will receive 70% of their regular salary, the major part of which - up to 90% according to certain sources - will be financed by a government plan in favor of companies needing financial support to cope with the coronavirus crisis.
The Korean Air union has accepted the measure, which aims to "share the load," said the company, whose leaders also agreed to cut wages.
The move comes after months of conflict within the Cho family over the takeover of the company.
For years, this family, mingled with multiple scandals, has hit the headlines.
The family's oldest, Cho Hyun-Ah, made headlines in 2014 after forcing two crew members to kneel to ask for forgiveness after being served macadamia nuts in their bags. and not in a bowl.
Recently, she sought to oust her brother Cho Won-tae from the presidency of Korean Air.
The latter finally obtained, last month, the support of the shareholders.
Even before the coronavirus crisis, the Hanjin group was in trouble.
Its subsidiary Hanjin Shipping, the leading South Korean shipowner and seventh in the world, went bankrupt in 2017.
© 2020 AFP