El Al has begun the process of dismissing 71 pilots based on seniority

El Al has begun the process of dismissing 71 pilots. The move is based on seniority, meaning the 71 candidates for dismissal are the pilots with the lowest seniority.
The dismissals of 71 pilots are in addition to the 32 who have already been fired in March 2020, 40 pilots who have retired and ten who have retired. So the number of pilots in El Al will drop by 153 within a year.
El Al announced through the fleet managers to the candidates for dismissal the intention to do so. Following the designated talks with the candidates for dismissal, the names were transferred to the Pilots Committee and in 14 days the hearings will take place.
The pilots' committee plans to examine in the coming days whether there are pilots who want to resign in order to replace candidates for dismissal who can remain on unpaid leave until the resumption of flights. The process and layoffs will take effect.
The committee noted that there would be maintenance of the seniority accumulated by the pilot for a period of at least five years and re-absorption for pilot work would be done according to the seniority and before hiring new pilots for the company.
El Al reported to the stock exchange yesterday on the extension of unpaid leave until the end of March 2021. The company noted that as of today, 5,245 employees are in the IAF; an increase of 265 employees compared to its previous report from the end of December 2020 to the IAA extension until the end of January 2021.