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By Tracy Rucinski and Sanjana Shivdas
(Reuters) -American Airlines Group Inc said Thursday it has asked about 3,300 flight attendants on voluntary leave to return by travel season to meet growing customer demand, according to a letter to staff reviewed by Reuters.
The U.S. airline said it would also start recruiting and hiring around 800 new flight attendants by March 2022.
“Growing customer demand and new routes starting later this year mean we need more flight attendants to operate the airline,” the company said.
American Airlines put about 8,000 flight attendants on leave when federal aid to airline workers temporarily expired last year and thousands more took voluntary leave programs meant to cut costs during the pandemic .
But as travel demand increased thanks to rapid COVID-19 vaccinations and the easing of restrictions, airlines scrambled to bring back employees whose jobs would otherwise have been threatened when a third cycle of government aid will expire in October.
U.S. airlines have received a total of $ 54 billion to cover workers’ wages during the coronavirus crisis. Coupled with the rebound, that money helped Delta Air Lines publish its first quarterly profit on Wednesday since the pandemic.
American, which is due to release its second quarter results next Thursday, said it may also report a small profit.
General manager Doug Parker said demand remained strong in July and for the rest of the summer, with business customers returning more and more.
Other airlines have also announced plans to recall staff and start hiring again, a drastic turnaround in threats of leave when the industry remained in the doldrums a year ago.
(Reporting by Tracy Rucinski in Chicago and Sanjana Shivdas in Bangalore; Editing by Devika Syamnath and Richard Pullin)
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