The airline expects additional cuts as it integrates operations with Alaska Air.
Hawaiian Airlines said it has sent pink slips to 61 Hawaiʻi-based employees as the company continues to cut non-union jobs after its merger with Alaska Airlines. The latest cuts are in addition to 57 job losses announced in October by the Honolulu-based carrier due to the merger.
The combined companies have pledged to keep all of Hawaiian’s more than 6,000 union employees. But Hawaiian’s approximately 1,300 non-union workers are another story.
The airlines expect to eliminate some of those non-union jobs as Hawaiian and Alaska integrate operations over the next year, although the vast majority of those workers received permanent or interim positions, according to Hawaiian Airlines.
The deal closed in September. The newest job cuts will become effective on March 17.
“These employees have done important work to integrate our airlines in the initial stages of our combination, and we are supporting them in their career transition with both a retention and a severance package, as well as job placement services,” Hawaiian spokesman Alex Da Silva said in a statement.
Da Silva said the company encourages the laid-off employees to apply for open jobs at Alaska or Hawaiian, and some may get interim job offers between now and March.
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About the Author
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Stewart Yerton is the senior business writer for Honolulu Civil Beat. You can reach him at syerton@civilbeat.org.