Emirates, flydubai cut thousands of jobs

Emirates (EK, Dubai Int’l) laid off at least 600 pilots, predominantly first officers certified on the A380-800 type, in a round of group redundancies on June 9, Moneycontrol has reported. According to ch-aviation sources, the airline also laid off as many as 2,400 cabin crew members. Reuters’ sources indicated that cuts could affect nearly a third of the carrier’s workforce, which includes 4,300 pilots and 22,000 cabin crew. The airline did not confirm the size of the cuts but admitted it was “right-sizing” its personnel. “Given the significant impact that the pandemic has had on our business, we simply cannot sustain excess resources and have to right-size our workforce in line with our reduced operations,” a spokesperson told Reuters. Emirates added that it was doing “everything possible” to preserve as many jobs as possible. Meanwhile, the carrier’s sister firm flydubai (FZ, Dubai Int’l) has also confirmed that it would cut up to 800 jobs, including 200 pilots, as it seeks to downsize its B737-800 fleet.