Cathay to slash workforce

AROUND 600 Cathay Pacific staff at its Hong Kong HQ will be without a job by mid next month as the airline takes further action to address recent massive losses.

Cathay Pacific this morning said that 190 management jobs (25% of its management) will be shed immediately, while a further 400 non-management positions will be cut by mid-Jun.

No frontline employees, pilots or cabin crew are affected by the latest redundancies.

Last month, Cathay announced a senior management shuffle which saw former ceo Ivan Chu replaced by chief operation officer Rupert Hogg, since 01 May ( TD 13 Apr).

Just three weeks into the role, the workforce cuts are the first task overseen by Hogg who is in charge of Cathay’s new three- year corporate transformation plan, aimed at making the airline “more agile and competitive”.

The program aspires to save the airline HK$4b over three years.

“As we look to the future we will have a new structure that will make us leaner, faster and more responsive to our customers’ needs. It is the first step in the transformation of our business,” Hogg announced.

MEANWHILE, Cathay Pacific has inked a new codeshare deal with oneworld partner Iberia that will expand the Hong Kong-based carriers reach further in Europe.

The agreement will see the CX code added to Iberia-operated flights from Madrid to Alicante, Barcelona, Bilbao, Valencia and Palma, as well as Lisbon, Portugal.