Canada's second largest airline cuts jobs and flights

OTTAWA, Jan. 8 (Xinhua) -- Canada's second-largest airline WestJet announced Friday it would lay off 1,000 people and cut flights due to official travel restrictions against the rampaging COVID-19 pandemic.

"Immediately following the federal government's inbound testing announcement on Dec. 31, and with the continuation of the 14-day quarantine, we saw significant reductions in new bookings and unprecedented cancellations," said Ed Sims, WestJet chief executive officer, in a statement on Friday.

"The entire travel industry and its customers are again on the receiving end of incoherent and inconsistent government policy. We have advocated over the past 10 months for a co-ordinated testing regime on Canadian soil, but this hasty new measure is causing Canadian travelers unnecessary stress and confusion and may make travel unaffordable, unfeasible and inaccessible for Canadians for years to come," Sims said.

The layoff will be made across the company's network in a combination of temporary layoffs, furloughs, unpaid leaves and reduced hours. Seat capacity will be reduced in February and March by 30 percent, or by more than 80 percent from the same period in 2020.

In addition, the airline will reduce domestic frequencies by 160 departures as evolving advisories, travel restrictions and guidance continue to negatively impact demand trends.

On Thursday, the Canadian government began requiring that anyone aged five and older flying into Canada show proof of a negative COVID-19 test taken in the previous 72 or 96 hours, depending on the country.

The Canadian airline industry opposed the official order and said it would create confusion at departure gates and should be accompanied by relaxed quarantine requirements.

"Regrettably, this new policy leaves us with no other option but to again place a large number of our employees on leave, while impacting the pay of others," Sims added.