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24. 02. 10. - 14:00

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24. 02. 10. - 14:00

Quarter of AUA's Austrian Cargo staff to get chop as merger looms

Struggling Austrian Airlines (AUA) continues its job-cutting spree as it emerged today (Weds) that one in four workers at its freight division will lose their jobs.

The company said 50 of its 200 Austrian Cargo employees will be dismissed as of 1 July 2010 as it merges its freight division with that of Lufthansa. The German aviation giant acquired a major stake in AUA last September – a move that rescued AUA from bankruptcy, according to many analysts.

AUA said the decision was part of its ambition to get back into the black as soon as possible.

Lufthansa Cargo employs around 4,600 people worldwide. It had a turnover of 2.9 billion Euros in 2008. AUA’s Austrian Cargo made 140 million Euros in the same year.

AUA said the two freight divisions will be headed by a "joint leadership".

The announcement comes the day after the company, founded in 1957, said 210 workers at its technical department have to go.

AUA spokesman Martin Hehemann said the initial plan had been to lay off 250 technicians. He said the affected employees had been informed on Monday and had already been registered with the Austrian Labour Market Service (AMS).

AUA’s competitors attacked the deal with Lufthansa.

Niki Lauda, CEO of budget airline FlyNiki, said he was angry with the Austrian government over its decision to bolster the ailing company with 500 million Euros of taxpayers' money shortly before Lufthansa stepped in.

The European Commission eventually gave the green light for the takeover after checking claims the new airline could breach competition laws by creating a monopoly in the European aviation business.

AUA’s connections to Russia are feared to be at risk after the Russian government recently announced it expected clarification from the new AUA board over whether the firm could still be considered Austrian. This comes as Russia’s bilateral agreement on connections was signed on condition that the company had Austrian owners.

Austrian Times

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