Southwest approaches unions to discuss coronavirus impact

Southwest Airlines has begun to communicate with various unions that represent its employees about potential concessions in their contracts, signaling layoffs and pay cuts may happen later in the year if damage from the coronavirus continues.

Southwest is set to receive $4 billion in payroll aid from the recently passed CARES Act. Because of this, the company is barred from furloughing or laying off any of its roughly 60,000 employees until Sept. 30.

“This is just beyond anything we’ve ever experienced,” Russell McCrady, vice president for labor relations, told Reuters.

He added: “There are no plans sitting on a desk at the company for anybody to be furloughed, but we’re trying to take advantage of the 5.5 months that the CARES Act has provided us to just get started on: ‘What if things don’t get better?’”

In its nearly 50-year history, the airline has reportedly never had to issue pay cuts, layoffs or furloughs, even after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and the 2009 financial crisis.

Southwest told the wire service that talks with unions were about if the industry didn’t recover.

“While we stand willing to address the need for temporary relief through more thoughtful voluntary measures, we are wary of concessionary changes to the terms of our existing contract,” one union leader told members in a letter, adding that concessions didn’t guarantee that there wouldn’t be any furloughs or pay cuts come October.