Skip to main content
In a sign of how the COVID-19 pandemic is impacting the travel industry, the nation's most successful airline has told state officials it will conduct a mass layoff at Portland International Airport.
Southwest Airlines said negotiations with its union employees have failed to achieve targeted cost savings.
"As a result, we must unfortunately involuntarily furlough customer service agents, ramp agents, provisioning agents, and freight agents nationwide to further reduce costs," Southwest told state officials in a Dec. 3 letter.
The proposed layoffs would affect 84 workers and go into effect March 15.
Less than a month ago, The Wall Street Journal highlighted how Southwest was using the disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic to expand.
"The pandemic is forcing many airlines to defend their turf. Southwest is using it to invade," the Journal reported Nov. 16. "Even as air travel languished in this fall, Southwest Airlines Co. executives fanned out to cities from Palm Springs, Calif., to Sarasota, Fla., to scope out potential new markets. The airline is adding four more cities to its network this year and announced plans for another six in 2021. And it's looking for more."
But then last week, Southwest made the required notifications to the state of Oregon that it was planning a large layoff.
Southwest's efficiency and profitability are the envy of the airline industry—the Journal noted the company has been profitable for 47 years in a row, a stretch in which its competitors, including American, Delta and United, have periodically suffered massive losses.
But in its letter to state officials, Southwest said its revenues are down 70% from last year. The only good news: The airline thinks the layoffs will be relatively short-lived.
"Although we cannot predict with any certainty, based on the best information at this time," Southwest wrote, "we expect that this furlough will last more than six months but will be temporary."