Thai Airways International PLC said Tuesday it expects around 6,000-7,000 employees to participate in a voluntarily resignation agreement, thereby halving its workforce.

The employee reduction is part of the troubled flag carrier's debt rehabilitation plan submitted to the Central Bankruptcy Court as ordered by the Thai government last year.

Chansin Treenuchagron, the carrier's acting president, said that Thai Airways employed some 29,000 workers in 2019, before reducing to 21,000 at the end of last year.

It expects a further reduction to around 14,000-15,000 positions by this year which the company considers "suitable for the airline's future business plan," according to Chansin.

==Kyodo

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