RYANAIR IS set to cut 3,000 jobs as part of a major restructure designed to help the airline cope with the fallout from the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
The 3,000 jobs cut will be mainly made up of pilots and cabin crew and represents 15% of the Irish firm’s overall workforce.
Under the restructure plans, Ryanair is also set to close some of its regional hubs around the UK and the rest of the world, though they have yet to confirm which.
Remaining staff are likely to face a 20% pay cut with Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary telling the BBC that the measures are the minimum required “just to survive the next 12 months”.
Details of redundancies and pay cuts are expected to be announced, in further detail, by July 1.
Mr O’Leary added that if a vaccine was not found, “more cuts and deeper cuts" are likely in the future.
He also warned passengers awaiting refunds for cancelled flights that the airline has a backlog of 25 million to process.
The speed of processing this backlog has been further hampered by a 25% reduction in staff levels.
The Ryanair chief estimates that refunds on flights scheduled for as late as May could take up to six months to process.
It comes amid expectations that the airline will report net losses of more than €100m (£87m) for the first three months of the year, with more expected over the second quarter.
In line with these losses Mr O'Leary has now agreed to extend this 50% pay cut for the remainder of the financial year.
Despite the grave financial situation, Ryanair is operating with cash reserves in the region of €4bn and is actively working to manage those resources through the pandemic.
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