MONTREAL, Canada, June 5 (Xinhua) -- Canadian transportation giant Bombardier Inc. announced on Friday that it will lay off 2,500 people throughout the year as the company struggles to keep its operations afloat during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Montreal-based company said 1,500 of the layoffs will be in its Quebec facilities and 400 in Ontario, with the rest of the layoffs in its international facilities.
"These are permanent layoffs," the company said in a statement.
Bombardier employs 22,000 people worldwide, making Learjets, Challenger and Global business jets, which seat fewer than 20 people.
The company halted all its operations in March due to the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic and gradually resumed operations last month, but reported a loss of 200 million U.S. dollars in its first quarter.
In February, Bombardier exited the commercial plane business, selling its remaining stake in the A220 program to Airbus, in an effort to pay off a multibillion-dollar debt.
That same month, the company sold its rail-building unit to French train giant Alstom SA, marking its exit from the rail business. Enditem
