Southwest Airlines Offers Another Round of Voluntary Leave to Employees

Southwest Airlines is offering employees another round of voluntary leave as travel demand has yet to see the expected rebound this year. The packages offered vary between one and three months depending on the work group.

“Southwest remains overstaffed in many areas. As a result, some departments will be offering additional opportunities for Employees to take Extended Time Off (ExTO) beginning in March 2021, based upon projected staffing levels”, the company said in an email to Reuters.

Southwest added that the timing of the new round of voluntary leave coincides with the period when some employees will return from previously-awarded, six-month leaves on March 1, 2021.

The U.S. Treasury Department has already started distributing $15 billion in new payroll assistance to airlines, money allocated by Congress to help more than 32,000 aviation workers return to jobs through at least March 31.