Lawmakers brand British Airways job cuts a ‘national disgrace’

U.K. lawmakers lashed out at British Airways over plans for 12,000 job cuts, saying the carrier had sought to exploit the coronavirus crisis to slash headcount and weaken employment terms for remaining staff.

The House of Commons transport committee said in a report on the pandemic’s impact on aviation that while some workforce reductions were inevitable, BA had made a calculated bid to take advantage of the situation even as the state was paying the wages of employees through a national furlough program.

“The behavior of British Airways and its parent company towards its employees is a national disgrace,” the report said. “It falls well below the standards we would expect from any employer, especially in light of the scale of taxpayer subsidy, at this time of national crisis.”