TAP started today (08/07) the process of collective dismissal, resulting from the restructuring of the airline, which includes 124 employees.
This number represents a very expressive reduction (94 percent less) compared to the approximately 2000 employees who were estimated in February to be integrated into the job resizing process inscribed and required by the TAP Restructuring Plan, under consideration by the European Commission.
This reduction in the number of workers identified for collective dismissal is the result of an extraordinary effort that included the g of Temporary Emergency Agreements with all the Unions, terminations by mutual agreement with financial compensation above the legally required, as well as candidacies for vacancies available in the Portugalia, among other measures.
According to Christine Ourmières-Widener, Executive President of TAP, “Our main priority has always been to promote and encourage voluntary measures and, in the case of departures, with higher compensation than those provided for by law. We focused on managing the process with dignity and respect for people, with all cases assessed individually. Overall, these extraordinary efforts have significantly reduced the initial headcount reduction objective in the restructuring plan”.
The Restructuring Plan currently underway aims to adjust TAP's capacity and cost structure to the current operational reality and projections for the coming years.
After 15 months since the start of the pandemic, the aviation industry is flying around 50 percent compared to 2019 levels, which has forced the various airlines to take strong restructuring measures worldwide, and TAP is no exception.
The current macroeconomic framework and the inherent projections point to a particularly slow recovery in demand, with 2019 levels not expected to return before 2024/25, an estimate that is still dependent on the future evolution of the pandemic and the effectiveness of vaccination.
Between February and June, several phases of voluntary measures were actively promoted at the airline, as well as applications for available vacancies in Portugália.
“We regret all the job cuts caused by the pandemic, in the airline industry and in other sectors, however we must make a firm commitment to the restructuring plan. The survival and sustainable recovery of TAP depends on the effective implementation of the plan”, adds Christine Ourmières-Widener.
TAP's resizing plan was shared with the entire company in December 2020 and began in February this year, with the g of Temporary Emergency Agreements with all unions in the context of TAP's declaration as a Company in Difficult Economic Situation (SED ), followed by voluntary measures, which aimed to achieve, preferentially and in a consensual manner, the reduction objective.
