Dubai-based airline Emirates is asking its workers to take up to a month of unpaid leave as the coronavirus outbreak forces it and other carriers to cancel flights.

The state-owned airline in the United Arab Emirates has more resources than necessary now that it’s scrapped flights to certain destinations and reduced frequencies, chief operating officer Adel al-Redha said in a Tuesday statement. Emirates has canceled flights to most of China as well as Iran and Bahrain because of the virus epidemic.

ALSO READ: Chinese national suspected of Coronavirus infection intercepted at Lagos Airport

“Considering the availability of additional resources and the fact that many employees want to utilize their leave, we have provided our employees the option to avail leave or apply for voluntary unpaid leave for up to one month at a time,” al-Redha said.

Emirates which had more than 100,000 employees as of March 2019 is among several major airlines that have altered their operations in response to the coronavirus outbreak, which has led some countries to restrict entry by foreigners. The disease, known as COVID-19, has killed some 3,100 people and sickened more than 90,000 worldwide.

ALSO READ: BREAKING: Ihedioha loses again as Supreme Court declines to set-aside Imo judgement

More than 20 cases have been reported in the United Arab Emirates, where major events have been postponed or canceled amid the virus’s spread.

Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific in February similarly asked its thousands of workers to take three weeks of unpaid leave starting this month as it grappled with the financial impact of the virus, which originated in China. And major US airlines including Delta, American, and United have suspended flights to mainland China because of the epidemic.

New York Post

Vanguard News