Via Rail to lay off 1,000 as ridership, routes take hit

MONTREAL—Via Rail is temporarily laying off about 1,000 unionized employees as the company copes with interrupted routes and reduced travel demand amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Unfortunately, as we don’t anticipate ridership to be back to pre-COVID-19 levels in the foreseeable future, we had to make difficult decisions to deal with the situation as we gain a better understanding of the impacts of the pandemic on our operations,” Cynthia Garneau, Via’s president and CEO, said in a statement Wednesday.

The layoffs take effect on July 24. Affected employees will receive a temporary written layoff notice that respects their collective agreement’s terms, the Montreal-based company said. It will maintain access to different programs for the employees. The company is working to advance its service resumption plan and has seen some recent positive developments, though many routes remain interrupted.

Via Rail said it plans to bring back employees “as soon as the customer demand allows it.”