Royal Caribbean Cruises has laid off a quarter of its US-based employees as it faces major losses as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
The cruise major with 62 ships dismissed 26% of 5,000 workers at its Miami headquarters and other areas throughout the country on Wednesday.
The dismissals consisted of permanent layoffs and 90-day furloughs, with benefits at all employee levels, spokesman Jonathan Fishman said.
"The circumstances of the pandemic made this action unavoidable, and it hurts to part ways with so many good and talented people," he told TradeWinds.
He said the company, which has 65,000 employees worldwide, has ended "many contracts" but did not specify how many.
The cruise industry is reeling amid Covid-19 disruption that includes cancelled voyages, ship quarantines and mass fleet lay-ups.
Royal Caribbean and Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings have suspended their fleets through to mid-May.
Carnival Corp has extended its suspension until late June amid a 100-day cruise ban for US territories.
The "Big Three" cruise behemoths have lost billions of dollars in equity and revenue over the past few months as the pandemic takes the entire once-booming sector out of commission.
Their shares have fallen by at least 70% in value over this time, yet have seen recent gains amid landing billions of dollars in financing in a desperate effort to stay afloat.
Carnival stock fell 1% on Wednesday to close at $12.38 on Wall Street, while Royal Caribbean shares slid 2.3% to $36.98. Norwegian stock declined 2.2% to close at $12.08.
