An Asian airline that serves the UAE market is implementing some job cuts that will affect at least 600 personnel in its main headquarters, Gulf News has learned.

In a statement released on Monday, Cathay Pacific announced that the redundancy will leave a number of senior, middle management and non-managerial employees jobless.

The move, said to be the biggest staff shake-up at the company in nearly 20 years, followed after the carrier announced that it had incurred some $74 million in financial losses for 2016, the first since the global recession.

“We have had to make tough but necessary decisions for the future of our business and customers. Changes in people’s travel habits and what they expect from us, evolving competition and a challenging business outlook have created the need for significant change,” said Rupert Hogg, chief executive officer at Cathay Pacific.

The major restructuring will displace 190 employees holding managerial roles and 400 more who are holding non-managerial positions. The staff cuts represent 25 per cent of management and 18 per ccent of non-managerial positions, respectively.

The airline assured, however, that no frontline employees, pilots or cabin crew, will be affected by the staff reduction. However, these employees are expected to "deliver greater efficiencies and productivity improvements."

Cathay Pacific operates a number of flights from Dubai to various destinations in Asia, Australasia, the Americas and the Middle East.

"Cathay Pacific will continue to invest in its frontline capabilities to deliver high-quality products and services to its customers."

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