Avis extends furloughs, implements permanent layoffs at CT locations

Photo | Avis Budget Car Rental Avis in July said it plans to cut expenses by over $1 billion due to a loss of business during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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By Joe Cooper

Businesses fueled by Bradley International Airport in Windsor Locks continue to suffer from financial hardship caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

Avis Budget Car Rental LLC informed state labor officials on Monday that it has extended the furlough period or implemented permanent layoffs for 12 employees in Windsor Locks, five in New Haven and six in Danbury.

The notice posted by the state Department of Labor did not say how many layoffs were permanent.

The car rental company, headquartered in Parsippany, N.J., said it initially expected the furloughs to last less than six months when the employees were relieved of their duties between April and June. But the company's finances have not improved in recent months like they had hoped.

In late July, Avis announced it would implement a more than $1 billion cost-cutting plan across the country after its second quarter revenues were down 67% year-over-year.

“The continued economic hardship resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic and the negative impact of recently issued travel advisories on our car rental business were not reasonably foreseeable earlier, preventing us from making this decision and providing you with this notice sooner," an Avis official wrote in the notice.

Avis is not the only company feeling the pain by declining activity at Bradley.

In May, DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel, located near Bradley airport at 16 Ella T. Grasso Turnpike, told labor officials it was planning to both permanently and temporarily lay off about 70 employees because the pandmeic has "crippled the company's business... ."

Months later, the Sheraton Hartford Hotel at the airfield announced plans to lay off 91 workers, as business continues to sag amid the COVID-19 pandemic with no end in sight.