Spirit Airlines has announced plans to furlough approximately one-third of its flight attendants by December 1 amid financial turmoil.
According to USA Today, the beleaguered budget airline will furlough 1,800 out of 5,200 flight attendants in an effort to "align staffing with our fleet size and expected flight volume."
More than 800 flight attendants have already taken either voluntary time off or extended voluntary time off. However, the airline's executive vice president and chief operating officer, John Bendoraitis, said there's a limit to how many employees can go on leave, hence the furloughs.
"We recognize the impact of this decision on affected Team Members and we are committed to treating them with care and respect during this process," Spirit wrote in an emailed statement to USA Today.
The union representing Spirit's flight attendants notes that the airline must offer voluntary furloughs before implementing involuntary furloughs this fall.
After awarding the voluntary furloughs, Spirit will move forward with involuntary furloughs in inverse order of system seniority up to the 1,800 number, in accordance with flight attendant contracts, according to the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA.
Spirit, which has filed for bankruptcy multiple times in the past year, is facing an uncertain future, slashing flights, dropping out of several markets and laying off hundreds of pilots as a result.
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