Delta offers voluntary severance payouts

Delta Air Lines -- the world's biggest carrier --will offer voluntary severance payouts to a majority of the 75,000 employees at Delta and Northwest's mainline operations. Executives said today it's part of a plan to cut an unspecified number of jobs. Chief Executive Richard Anderson and President Ed Bastian said in a memo to employees that the program is similar to one earlier this year that Delta used to trim about 4,000 jobs. Northwest previously trimmed jobs of its own before being acquired by Delta on Oct. 29. The executives say the cuts are necessary because Delta will be reducing systemwide capacity in 2009 by 6 percent to 8 percent because the weak economy has eroded demand for seats on airplanes.

(Associated Press)