Abdelrahman
Southwest Airlines Announces Layoffs: 1,750 Positions Affected
Earlier this week, Southwest Airlines revealed plans to lay off 1,750 employees, marking the first significant job cuts in the airline’s 53-year history. Here’s what we know regarding the impacted positions.
Located in Dallas, Southwest Airlines filed a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) with the Texas Workforce Commission. This notice indicated that 626 positions will be eliminated at its Dallas headquarters and at a maintenance facility located on Shorecrest Drive.
The layoffs are scheduled to begin on April 22. Employees who are affected will have the opportunity to receive a severance package, provided they sign a separation agreement following the layoffs.
According to the WARN notice, the layoffs are expected to be permanent and will not lead to the closure of any facilities. Affected employees will unfortunately not have the ability to displace other employees within the company.
The layoffs will impact various roles, including 22 senior technology analysts, 19 senior technology project managers, 10 technology analysts, as well as several quality assurance auditors and specialists.
For a comprehensive overview of the affected roles, you can refer to the official notice linked here.
In a recent announcement, Southwest Airlines stated that these layoffs will primarily focus on corporate overhead and leadership roles, accounting for approximately 15% of corporate positions. It remains uncertain where the remaining positions not detailed in the WARN notice will be affected.
Southwest Airlines expects that these layoffs will lead to annual savings of around $300 million.
In a statement, Southwest President and CEO Bob Jordan expressed the difficulty of this decision, acknowledging the large impact on employees who have contributed to the company’s culture and achievements. “This is a very difficult and monumental shift,” he stated. “We must streamline our Leadership and Noncontract roles to remain efficient and effectively serve our frontline employees and customers.”
For more detailed insights and updates, keep an eye on news releases from Southwest Airlines.
