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British Airways Hits Back After Scathing Parliament Report

British Airways Hits Back After Scathing Parliament Report

(Bloomberg) -- British Airways parent IAG SA rejected a Parliamentary committee report that branded the carrier’s plan to cut as many as 12,000 jobs a “national disgrace.”

IAG formally rejects the findings and recommendations of the report, Willie Walsh, the airline group’s chief executive officer, said in a letter Monday sent to Transport Committee Chairman Huw Merriman and seen by Bloomberg News.

British Airways approach to the job cuts was “perfectly lawful” and has been used by numerous employers for many years, the CEO said. Planned changes to employment terms and conditions were only proposals and the carrier has sought to consult with unions, Walsh said.

“This is not a disgrace. Lying down and surrendering without a fight would be a disgrace and we will not do that,” Walsh wrote. “British Airways is fighting for its survival, in the face of overwhelming and unprecedented challenges, while respecting the fundamental British value of the rule of law.”

A spokeswoman for the committee said members would consider Walsh’s response at their next meeting.

Scathing Report

On Saturday, the House of Commons committee released a report accusing British Airways of making a calculated bid to capitalize on the crisis to shed workers. It said that while some workforce reductions were inevitable, the airline was seeking to take advantage of the pandemic even as the state was paying the wages of employees through a national furlough program.

As it set plans to cut almost 30% of its payroll, British Airways warned that it would dismiss all of its 4,300 pilots and rehire them on new contracts in the absence of a deal to save money. The airline has since said it may offer voluntary redundancy to pilots and other staff as an alternative to compulsory dismissals.

The committee urged the U.K. aviation industry to hold off on headcount decisions until the furlough program ends in October and called on the government to change the rules to penalize firms imposing sweeping cuts while receiving taxpayer funds.

It also said the government and Civil Aviation Authority should review airport slot allocation in light of structural and market change. Aviation Minister Kelly Tolhurst said this month she might ask the CAA to confiscate BA slots over the job cuts, before cautioning that it wouldn’t be possible under the current system.

©2020 Bloomberg L.P.