This is a bigger crisis than 9/11, warns BA boss He fears jobs cull – as 50m workers at risk globally
HUNDREDS of thousands of UK jobs could be axed within weeks because of coronavirus.
Airlines, hotels and restaurants say they will have no choice but to cull staff and reduce working hours.
Up to 50million jobs could be lost globally because of the pandemic, according to the World Travel and Tourism Council.
Alex Cruz, the boss of British Airways, said his airline was fighting for its survival, job cuts were inevitable and the situation was more serious than 9/11.
He told staff in a memo: ‘We are suspending routes and will be parking aircraft in a way that we have never had to do before. Please do not underestimate the seriousness of this for our company.’
Half a million seasonal jobs in holiday parks, hotels and tourist areas have already been ‘frozen’, and ‘hundreds of thousands’ more are at risk due to a coronavirus cash crunch for UK bars, cafes and restaurants.
Alastair Darling, who was chancellor during the 2008 financial crisis, said the Government must consider massive bailouts for airlines and other firms hit by the virus.
Brian Strutton, of the British Airline Pilots Association (Balpa), said: ‘There is a danger that this pandemic will leave UK aviation in pieces. Airlines need the Government to step in now.’
Balpa has demanded the Government remove air passenger duty to ‘help airlines through their financial woes’.
Dozens of airlines have cancelled flights as travel restrictions continue to tighten and worried holidaymakers choose to stay at home. Low-cost airline Norwegian Air has cancelled more than 4,000 flights and said it plans to lay off up to half its staff. Easyjet and Ryanair have cancelled hundreds of flights, while Virgin Atlantic has admitted some of its planes are ‘almost empty’.
In the UK, unions warned a swathe of airlines were preparing to announce job cuts. Tim Morris, a civil air transport secretary for Unite, said: ‘The aviation industry was in crisis even without coronavirus. This is a perfect storm for our members.’
Yesterday the European Union condemned US President Donald Trump’s decision to suspend all travel from the Schengen area of Europe for 30 days.
Insurers Aviva, Direct Line and Churchill suspended the sale of travel insurance to new customers, and Axa said new policies will not cover disruption caused by the virus.
The impact of coronavirus is already placing the hospitality sector, which employs 3.2million people, under serious strain. Hotels are just a third full and sales in city centre bars and restaurants are down by a half, said Kate Nicholls, chief executive of UK Hospitality.
She added: ‘This is a question of survival for hospitality businesses. In two months they will run out of cash, putting hundreds of thousands of jobs at risk.’
High streets are braced for a collapse in the number of shoppers, with new figures yesterday showing footfall has fallen by a tenth in some spots.
Hays Travel, which bought 550 Thomas Cook stores in January, has asked staff to take unpaid leave. The pandemic could also deal a ‘hammer blow’ to the UK recording industry and ‘threaten the livelihoods of many people’, UK Music said.
BBC Radio 1’s Big Weekend, due to take place in Dundee in late May, was cancelled and The Who, Madonna and Miley Cyrus have all abandoned live dates.
Cineworld said a widespread drop in demand could force it out of business in an update to the market this week.
Theatregoers cancelled bookings to shows across the country, as playhouses prepared for a change in Government advice that would see thousands of performances cancelled. The widespread uncertainty is also likely to hit the housing market.
Bosses lined up to criticise Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s first Budget for not doing enough to protect businesses from going bust. Jonathan Downey, founder of London Union, which operates food and drink markets in London, said: ‘We need the Government to do something drastic if businesses are to survive and jobs be saved. ‘Not even the best businesses can survive this level of catastrophic collapse and the Government needs to act now.’ Germany has pledged a big ‘bazooka’ of unlimited cash loans to business hit by coronavirus. The UK Government has promised to guarantee £1billion of loans. In a sign of the severity of the crisis for the aviation industry, America’s Delta Airlines said it was in bailout talks with the White House.
‘This is a question of survival’