Important Update On Involuntary Furloughs: Sept. 2, 2020

Sept.

2, 2020

Important update on involuntary furloughs

For the past several months, we have kept you updated about the devastating impact the
COVID-19 pandemic has had on travel demand and on our business. Our leadership team has
also been direct, honest and consistent about our plan to save our company, protect the long-
term future of our employees and bounce back quickly when customer demand returns. Here
are just a few components of the plan that we’ve put into action:
▪ Aggressive cost-cutting, including the reduction of executive salaries

▪ Realistic network planning based on real-time traveler data
▪ Creative, proactive debt-raising to boost our liquidity
We’ve also introduced a host of voluntary leave, early retirement and reduced hours programs,
which tens of thousands of our employees have participated in to date.
In our plan to offset the impact of COVID-19 on our operation, involuntary furloughs were
always a last resort.
That’s why, even when we issued 36,000 WARN notices on July 8, we said that we would do
everything in our power to decrease that number “…through increased participation in new and
existing voluntary programs, as well as continued discussions with our union partners about
creative ways to help reduce furloughs.”
Over the past several weeks, together with our union partners, we have introduced new,
creative voluntary options for our IAM, AFA, IBT and PAFCA employees, and participation in
those programs has saved jobs. You can read a full summary of the creative solutions we’ve put
in place so far here, and our efforts to explore other voluntary options will continue.
But unfortunately, all of our efforts so far to cut costs, raise debt and introduce voluntary options
have not been enough to avoid involuntary furloughs entirely. Today, each of our operations
leaders communicated directly with their teams to share the heart-wrenching news that
approximately 16,000 United employees will be notified of an involuntary furlough effective as
early as October 1. This includes 1,400 Management and Administrative (M&A) employees who
have already been told their jobs will be eliminated at the end of this month.
Here is a breakdown by group:
Group Approximate Number of Employment Losses
Airport Operations 2,260

Catering Operations 320
Contact Centers 430
Flight Operations 2,850
Inflight Services 6,920
Management and Administrative 1,400
Network Operations Center (NOC) 180
Technical Operations 2,010
TOTAL 16,370
The pandemic has drawn us in deeper and lasted longer than almost any expert predicted, and
in an environment where travel demand is so depressed, United cannot continue with staffing
levels that significantly exceed the schedule we fly. Sadly, we don’t expect demand to return to
anything resembling normal until there is a widely available treatment or vaccine.
The CARES Act
As you know, Congress is negotiating another stimulus bill to address the economic impact of
COVID-19. That legislation may include an extension to the Payroll Support Program, and our
union partners, along with our own leadership team, have mounted a strong campaign in
support of that. To be clear, an extension would be the one thing that would prevent involuntary
furloughs on October 1 and hopefully delay any potential impact on employees until early 2021.
Many of you have participated in an effort to write to your representatives and advocate for an
extension. If you haven’t and you’d still like to lend your voice, click here to take action.
As each of our operations leaders shared in today’s email messages to their teams, today’s
announcement of involuntary furloughs is an outcome that no one wanted. And it is sad and
awful that we have to say goodbye for now to so many of our friends and colleagues. But to
each and every person impacted by today’s news, we want you to know that you are still a part
of our United family. We look forward to welcoming you back once this crisis is over, should you
choose to return.
Looking for information on your work group?

All letters sent from the operational leaders are now posted in their department activity streams
on Flying Together.

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Sept.

Important update on involuntary furloughs

▪ Aggressive cost-cutting, including the reduction of executive salaries

Here is a breakdown by group:

Group Approximate Number of Employment Losses

Airport Operations 2,260

The CARES Act

Looking for information on your work group?

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