Bombardier will lay off 2,500 aviation workers throughout the year as the company struggles to keep its operations afloat during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In a release Friday morning the Quebec-based transportation company said it is expecting to see a 30 per cent year-over-year loss in business jet sales, forcing it to reduce its workforce.
In a statement to Radio-Canada Friday, the company said 1,500 of the layoffs will be in its Quebec facilities and 400 in Ontario, with the rest of the layoffs in its international facilities.
“These are permanent layoffs,” the company confirmed in a statement.
Bombardier paused all operations in March in an effort to protect employees from the spread of the novel coronavirus.
It gradually resumed operations again last month, but had already reported a loss of $200 million US in its first quarter.
The layoffs are just the latest in a series of struggles for the aerospace giant.
In February, Bombardier exited the commercial plane business, selling its remaining stake in the A220 program to Airbus, in an effort to pay off a multibillion-dollar debt.
That same month, the company also sold its rail-building unit to French train giant Alstom SA, marking its exit from the rail business.
More to come.
