Rolls-Royce Holding PLC (LON:RR.) said it is planning to shut its aeroplane engine factory down for two weeks in the summer.
The FTSE 100 group said the temporary shutdown would allow it to manage costs amid a lack of revenue from the airline industry due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“As we continue to manage our cost base in response to the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the whole commercial aviation sector, we are proposing a two week operational shutdown of Civil Aerospace over the summer,” it said.
Management have started talks with unions on the shutdown and cost-cutting at the unit, the company added.
Workers at the plant have been told the two weeks’ pay they will lose from the shutdown will be spread across the year with the aim of minimising the impact on their income, according to the Sunday Telegraph, which first reported the story.
Rolls-Royce warned at the end of last month that continued travel restrictions resulting from the new variants of COVID-19 were pushing back the prospect of a recovery of long-haul travel compared to its prior expectations.
This is placing “further financial pressure on our customers and the wider aviation industry, all of which are impacting our own cash flows in 2021”, the company said at the time.