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SYDNEY (AFP) — The possible axing of 400 jobs by Australia‘s second-largest airline Virgin Blue would be a "big loss for the country" as it battles the economic downturn, Treasurer Wayne Swan said Wednesday.
Virgin Blue, part-owned by British billionaire Richard Branson, announced late Tuesday it was cutting domestic flights by eight percent due to "continued forecast deterioration in domestic demand".
This would effectively ground five aircraft and up to 400 jobs would be affected, although the company was considering a range of initiatives to minimise redundancies, Virgin said.
These included transferring staff to new international long haul airline V Australia, part-time work, job sharing and unpaid leave. "One job lost anywhere is a big loss for the individual and when many are lost it’s a big loss for the country," Swan told reporters.
He noted that the airline industry was "a very significant beneficiary" of government stimulus measures to boost consumer spending, adding that the local economy needed to be cushioned against the international downturn.
Virgin’s announcement followed cuts by national airline Qantas Tuesday to its India and China services, and the offloading of its domestic New Zealand flights to budget offshoot Jetstar.
Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce said the airline made the changes after closely monitoring its international operations amid turbulence created by the global economic crisis.
source: AFP
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