American Airlines to cut 19,000 jobs in October

American Airlines says it will cut nearly 20,000 jobs as air travel demand fails to return to its normal levels amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The airline on Tuesday said that 19,000 employees will be "involuntarily furloughed or separated from the company" on Oct. 1, assuming federal aid is not extended, CNN reports. The cuts include 17,500 union workers, as well as 1,500 administration and management jobs, CNBC reports.

Airlines received federal aid under Congress' CARES Act in March, which stated that they couldn't lay off employees until the beginning of October. But American Airlines CEO Doug Parker and President Robert Isom said the "problem" with this legislation is that at the time it was passed, "it was assumed that by September 30, the virus would be under control and demand for air travel would have returned." That, however, is "obviously not the case," as American Airlines will fly "less than 50 percent of our airline in the fourth quarter," the company said.

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These cuts will come after more than 12,000 American Airlines employees agreed to early retirements or buyout packages and 11,000 agreed to voluntary furloughs, CNN reports. Ultimately, the airline's workforce by October will shrink by 40,000, about a 30 percent decline from the 140,000 employees it had prior to the pandemic, Reuters reports. Previously, United Airlines warned it could furlough nearly 40 percent of its employees, and American Airlines said it could potentially have to cut 25,000 jobs.