Bombardier cuts 3,000 more jobs

Bombardier Inc. will cut 10 per cent of its aerospace work force, or about 3,000 jobs, as the demand for its business aircraft has deteriorated rapidly.

The cuts will take place at the company's facilities in Canada, the United States, Mexico and Northern Ireland by the end of calendar year 2009. This latest manpower reduction is in addition to the 1,360 layoffs announced last Feb. 5 when Bombardier adjusted the production rates of its Learjet and Challenger aircraft. Severance costs associated with these layoffs are expected to total approximately $30 million. “There is no doubt that we are going through challenging times and our business environment is changing fast,” Bombardier president and chief executive officer Pierre Beaudoin said in a statement. “There's a need for prudent execution, clear priorities and decisive action in the current action.” The company will eliminate 975 jobs at its Belfast aircraft manufacturing plant. Bombardier is the largest manufacturer in Northern Ireland, employing about 5,300 full-time staff and 700 subcontractors at its Belfast base. “We are seeing a massive blow not just to the economy of east Belfast but to Northern Ireland,” said First Minister Peter Robinson, who also represents east Belfast in the British Parliament in London.