This archive report was first published on 4 July 2020.
Kenya Airways is set to resume domestic operations in the coming weeks, but the airline's Chief Executive Officer Allan Kilavuka has announced plans to send home some of its workers.
According to Kilavuka, the layoffs and restructuring are necessary due to reduced operations, which have resulted in suppressed demand for air transport.
“With the suppressed demand for air transport, a large part of our fleet will remain grounded, therefore a decision has been reached to carry out an organization-wide right-sizing exercise which will see a reduction of our network, assets, and our staff,” Kilavuka said in a memo to staff.
Some employees will be forced to proceed on unpaid leave effective Monday, as their services will not be needed under the new company strategy.
Kenya Airways has lost in excess of Sh10 billion in revenue since January and is predicting a loss of up to Sh50 billion by December due to the pandemic.
“Our estimates are that since January to date, we have probably lost around USD 100 million (Sh10 billion), when we estimate to the end of the year we will lose USD 400 million to 500 million (Sh40-50 billion),” Kilavuka told journalists after the Annual General Meeting held last week.
The airline posted a net loss of Sh12.98 billion for the year that ended December 2019, compared to the Sh7.558 billion loss posted a year earlier.
