"We would have to wipe out a large swath of salaries, wages and benefits to match the low traffic levels, to have any hope of just breaking even," Kelly said, warning that quarterly losses could be in the billions until there is an effective vaccine that becomes widely available which he does not expect until late next year.
Southwest Airline can avoid furloughs and layoffs through 2021 if union workers agree to pay cuts, Chief Executive Gary Kelly said in a message to employees on Monday that detailed the devastating impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the industry.
Rivals American Airlines and United Airlines began furloughing 32,000 employees last week when a ban on job cuts expired without fresh federal aid. Southwest, which has never furloughed any workers, has said it may have to follow suit absent fresh federal relief or employee concessions.
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