Norwegian now hopes to come out stronger on the other side of the corona crisis, so that staff can be hired again.
Coronavirus has meant very limited aviation activity, and it has now had consequences for Norwegians pilot and cabin companies in Sweden and Denmark, which are now seeking bankruptcy.
For TV 2, Norway’s Communications Manager in Denmark, Andreas Hjørnholm, announces that the bankruptcy includes 614 stewards, cabin crew and pilots in Denmark.
It is extremely heartbreaking that it goes beyond colleagues who have done a fantastic job for Norwegian for many years. Everyone is in a kind of shock, including myself. We hope to be able to continue the work to get through the crisis and come back as a better company, which in turn will need more employees, he says.
Three of the companies that have filed for bankruptcy are Danish, while one is registered in Sweden. The Danish companies involved are Norwegian Pilot Services Denmark, Norwegian Cabin Services Denmark and Norwegian Air Resources Denmark.
We can’t wait any longer
Andreas Hjørnholm states that the company has made use of the wage compensation schemes implemented by the Danish state at the beginning of the coronavirus outbreak from a political point of view.
They (the state, ed.) Deserve praise for that. We must also just say that in the situation that the airline industry and Norwegian are in now, this has not been enough. We have been demanding state wage guarantees, but time has passed and now we can wait no longer, he says.
According to the head of communications, this is partly because it is still impossible to know when the boundaries will be reopened and when it will again be healthy to fly.
He emphasizes in this connection that the Norwegian state covers labor costs by 100 per cent in connection with the closure of air traffic.
In Denmark, you can get a good deal of coverage, but unfortunately this has not proved to be enough.
Norwegian has for a while implemented a number of measures to reduce costs, but the pilot and cabin companies in Denmark and Sweden have thus today filed for bankruptcy, the announcement says.
It has no effect on Norwegians overall business, it says.
