Airbus Unveils Restructuring Plan, Up to 10,000 Layoffs

European plane maker Airbus unveiled its restructuring plan Wednesday, including up to 10-thousand job cuts. The majority of layoffs will be in France and Germany, where most Airbus production is based, but factories in Britain and Spain also face job cuts. Airbus will also sell several factories to reduce costs.

Workers at an Airbus factory in northern France held a spontaneous strike Tuesday to protest the planned layoffs. Also Tuesday, Airbus union leaders threatened further strikes after meeting in Brussels to coordinate strategies.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Jacques Chirac called last week for Airbus to avoid forced layoffs and ensure job cuts are fairly distributed between the two countries.

欧洲飞机制造商空中客车星期三宣布重组计划，包括裁员大约1万人。裁员主要集中在法国和德国。这两个国家是空中客车的主要生产基地，但是英国和西班牙的工厂也面临裁员。空中客车还将出售几家工厂，以削减开支。

法国北部的一个空中客车工厂星期二自发举行罢工，抗议裁员计划。空中客车工会领袖星期二在布鲁塞尔开会协调行动策略后，威胁要举行更多的罢工。

德国总理默克尔和法国总统希拉克上星期都呼吁空中客车避免强制性裁员，并确保德法两国公平分摊裁员数量。