Employment and trade

Covid-19 has impacted airlines’ employment and trade. The airline industry supports many people, both formal and casual, through employment; for example, pilots, flight attendants and other skilled operators; all these people are at the risk of losing their job due to the covid-19 pandemic. With the coming of the pandemic, the airlines have taken measures to reduce the workforce to avoid overcrowding in workplaces, which can contribute to the spread of the virus. The airlines have also been affected because governments have put different rules regarding the import and export of goods and services. Every country has been permitted to put rules and regulations that will ensure its citizens’ safety from the spread of coronavirus; hence many measures and restrictions have been put on airline services and trade in general.

Transport

The covid-19 pandemics have affected public transport in many parts of the world. The government has been forced to take measures to counter the spread of covid-19. These measures have affected the airline transport sector because of the increase in cost. The government initiated many new measures in the sector; for example, a reduction of people ferried by half; there are also requirements to have a mask while traveling. The airline facilities are also required to have sanitizers and hand washing facilities. These new measures have led to an increase in air transport cost, which has also reduced the number of people using this means of transport.

The pandemic has also impacted the airline markets and other businesses relating to airlines. Major firms have fallen as a result of the pandemic. Covid-19 has resulted in the collapse of significant firms globally, especially, air transport and tourism. Tourism, a primary global business sector, has been dramatically affected by the pandemic (World Bank, 2020). The restrictions of major flights across the world resulting from the covid-19 outbreak have contributed to the fall of significant firms associated with the tourism sector, such as the restaurants that rely on tourists; many tourists rely on air transport to arrive at their destination (Vinod, 2020). The aircraft manufacturers have also been affected with their production rate going down, and procurements brought to a standstill, affecting even their previous orders, which are at a threat of being canceled.

Airline services represent a small part of the GDP, but it supports many sectors. When airline services are affected by the covid-19 pandemic, it will lead to the downfall of many other sectors, such as the tourism sector and aircraft manufacturing industries. When there is a drop in the number of passengers using the airline services due to the covid-19 pandemic and the rules put in place by the world health organization, many industries and jobs are put at risk, the change in passengers’ performance because the pandemic has brought the economy down, resulting in low demand for airline services. When the demand is low, many industries that rely on airline services are bound to fail.