Cathay Pacific has asked all its 27,000 employees to take three weeks of unpaid leave as the airline faces falling demand due to the deadly coronavirus outbreak, reports the South China Morning Post.
“I am appealing to each and everyone one of you to help,” chief executive officer Augustus Tang told employees in a taped video recording according to the South China Morning Post.
The airline is asking staff to take the unpaid leave on a voluntary basis between March and June.
Hong Kong’s flag carrier also plans to cut its global capacity by 30 percent, including reducing 90 percent of its flights into mainland China over the next two months. The airline cited a “…significant drop in market demand for their flights” due to the coronavirus outbreak as the reason behind its plans to cut flights.
In a letter to staff, CEO Augustus Tang said the outbreak has had a “very significant impact” on Cathay’s business, according to Bloomberg.
A growing number of airlines have stopped flights to mainland China as governments have advised against travel to the region in an effort to stop the spread of the coronavirus. Business Traveller Asia-Pacific is updating a round-up of all the airlines that have either suspended or cut frequency on their China routes:
More airlines suspend flights to China over coronavirus fears
United Airlines announced today that it will also cancel all flights to and from Hong Kong beginning February 8 until February 20 due to a “continued drop in demand”.
