Virgin Atlantic flies above aviation’s staff shortages in post-Covid re-hiring spree
The boss of Virgin Atlantic has suggested the reason it has been left out of recent airport chaos is because it has been re-hiring at ease amid industry-wide staff shortages.
Virgin Atlantic has been absent from half-term holiday headlines detailing long queues and cancelled flights, which chief executive Shai Weiss put down to its success in re-hiring cabin crew once Covid-19 restrictions eased.
“We have 5,000 applicants for 400 jobs,” Shai Weiss told The Sunday Telegraph today. “When [people] want to work in aviation, we are top of the list.”
Sharon Graham, general secretary of Unite – one of the largest unions in the UK – last week warned of “chronic staff shortages” across the aviation sector, which has been the catalyst for weeks of travel turmoil.
While the business will remain loss-making this year, unlike promises of profitability this year by rival British Airways, Weiss wants to be back in black in 2023.
However, Weiss, who is currently battling stage 3 colon cancer while at the helm of Virgin Atlantic, warned that the worst is still to come with soaring fuel costs and turbulent passenger demand amid the cost of living crisis.