Air Canada lays off 5,000 staff, France tries to save food supply

Air Canada. Pic/AFP

Air Canada is laying off more than 5,000 flight attendants, a union official says, as the country's largest airline cuts routes amid plunging demand due to the Coronavirus.

The Montreal-based carrier is laying off about 3,600 employees, plus 1,549 flight attendants at its low-cost subsidiary Rouge, according to Wesley Lesosky, head of the Air Canada component of the Canadian Union of Public Employees. The layoffs will take effect by April and affect roughly 60 per cent of flight attendants, Lesosky said.

The carrier says employees will be returned to active duty status once flights resume. French Finance minister Bruno Le Maire on Friday said the whole supply chain for the food industry must be guaranteed after France shut down this week all restaurants, cafes, cinemas and retail shops that are deemed nonessential. Many employees are working from home.

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