Job cut warning for airport staff

Staff at East Midlands Airport have been warned that 60 posts may be cut due to a decline in passenger numbers.

Bosses said 35 new posts will also be created as part of a restructuring programme bringing the total proposed job losses to 25.

Officials at the Castle Donington site will now begin consultations with unions over the proposals.

They said job cuts will be minimised through redeployment and voluntary cuts where possible.

Geoff Muirhead, chief executive of the Manchester Airports Group, which owns the airport, said: "As a result of the current recession, the business is already experiencing reductions in passenger throughput, which in turn reduces the income that it receives from our airline, and retail partners.

"The shorter-term outlook for the economy is not positive and as a business we expect to continue to face ongoing reductions in passenger numbers in the coming months, and we must respond to these circumstances."

The airport recorded its busiest year in 2008, with more than 5.6 million passengers passing through the site.