Gulf Air sacks staff as unions reject revamp

Bahrain’s loss-making flag carrier Gulf Air, struggling against competition from other regional carriers, has embarked on a sweeping restructuring plan that has annoyed unions over heavy job cuts. The company recently said it had sacked 15 per cent of its staff and closed four more routes in January as it pressed ahead with a restructuring plan that it launched a month earlier. The carrier, one of the Gulf region’s oldest airlines, has been struggling to cut losses mounted by stiff competition from fast growers like Dubai’s Emirates, Abu Dhabi’s Etihad and Qatar Airways, as well as rapidly expanding budget airlines like Flydubai and Air Arabia. It has also been hit by the kingdom’s political and security uncertainty that took a heavy toll on the economy due to Shiite-led protests that erupted in February 2011, and continue despite a deadly crackdown in March of the same year.