Alaska Airlines has told Washington state officials it plans permanent job cuts at facilities in Renton, Seattle and Spokane, part of a wider reduction the company says is tied to rising costs and steep financial losses this year. The airline says the affected facilities themselves are not closing, even though the workforce changes are expected to be permanent.
According to KOMO, Alaska Airlines informed Washington’s Employment Security Department of the planned cuts at its Renton, Seattle and Spokane facilities on Oct. 30. The listed sites include the Renton location at 1301 SW 16th St., Spokane International Airport at 9000 W. Airport Dr., and a cluster of SeaTac addresses covering the airport, corporate headquarters, general office, Gold Coast Center, hangar, hub, McGee building and Stinson office. KOMO reports the first employment separations are scheduled to begin on or about Dec. 31.
Other coverage of the same round of cuts describes a different timeline. MyNorthwest reports that affected employees will have their last working day on Nov. 13 and will continue receiving pay through Dec. 31. The two accounts have not been reconciled, and it remains unclear whether Dec. 31 marks the start of formal separations, as KOMO reports, or simply the end of a pay-continuation period, as MyNorthwest describes.
How Many Jobs Are Affected
The Washington job total is also reported inconsistently. MyNorthwest says Alaska Air Group is cutting 125 jobs in the state as part of a broader elimination of 200 positions companywide, while a search snippet from KREM puts the Washington figure at 121 positions starting Dec. 31. Both figures sit within the same general range, but the discrepancy has not been resolved in available reporting…