Transat A.T. says the potential plan to lay off up to 80 workers would represent a workforce reduction of just 1%, but that it might not trim any jobs at all. It also says the potential job action is part of a major organizational review announced last month.
Transat recently sent a notice to the Quebec government saying it might need to lay off up to 80 workers due to financial headwinds. The company said the layoffs, which could be effective 01NOV, would not apply to pilots or flight attendants.
Transat spokesman Andréan Gagné told Open Jaw the notice is purely a “precautionary” measure.
“As part of the implementation of a global optimization program announced last month, the process includes a review of our organizational structure,” he said in an email. “It is therefore possible that some changes will be made.
“It is important to note that the purpose of the notice is to comply with the Quebec Ministry of Labour regulations (required notice period), in the event that we would need to terminate employment. It is a precautionary measure taken by Transat.
“Eighty (layoffs) is an approximation and represents about 1% of our total workforce of over 5000 employees,” Gagné said. “There is no impact on the airline activities or our operations as the precautionary and regulatory warning to the Quebec Ministry of Labour could only affect employees under the provincial jurisdiction and therefore not our Air Transat employees under the federal jurisdiction (pilots, flight attendants, etc.).”
Quebec labour laws require some companies to submit potential layoff notices for provincially regulated jobs.
Transat on 12SEP reported a combined net loss of $155.3 million in its first three quarters of its current fiscal year, versus a loss of $28.5 million in the same period a year earlier. It said at the time it would launch a comprehensive plan called Elevation Program, a scheme designed “to accelerate our corporate strategy execution and drive long-term profitable growth.”
Annick Guérard, President and Chief Executive Officer of Transat, said the program “aims for a complete review of operations and business practices.”
Transat said its Q3 results “reflect evolving market conditions and industry-wide pressure, as recently indicated by other carriers.”
“Demand for leisure travel remains healthy, as evidenced by higher traffic, but consumers are increasingly price conscious given the current economic uncertainty,” Guérard said. “Capacity increases throughout the industry also added to competitive pressure and negatively impacted yields.”
“Over the course of the year, the company has felt the headwinds of stiff competition, engine recalls and the threat of a union strike, which together conspired to drain more money from the struggling outfit,” MSN.Com said.
Air Transat’s 2,100 flight attendants earlier this year agreed to a new contract that made them the highest paid in Canada.
