Airline Qantas slashes workforce over fuel costs

Qantas Airways Ltd, Australia’s flagship carrier, announced today it was slashing its work force by 1,500 people worldwide and abandoning plans to hire 1,200 more as it tries to deal with skyrocketing fuel costs.

Chief executive Geoff Dixon said the cuts would total 4% of its total work force and include closing call centres in Tucson, Arizona and London, causing the loss of 99 jobs there.