Alaska Airlines to Cut Jobs at Washington Locations by Year End

Alaska Airlines will permanently eliminate jobs at ten facilities across Renton, SeaTac and Spokane beginning on or about Dec. 31, the company disclosed in a federal notice dated Oct. 30, KOMO News reported. The airline filed the warning with the Washington Employment Security Department, triggering the state’s WARN Act requirement for advance notice of mass layoffs.

The cuts are expected to be permanent, though the company stressed that none of the affected facilities are closing entirely. Employees at the impacted sites will not have bumping rights, which normally allow workers to transfer into other available jobs, but some may be able to return to a former union position.

Ten Sites Across Three Cities Are Affected

The workforce reduction spans Alaska Airlines’ entire Western Washington footprint plus its Spokane operation. The federal notice lists these locations: 1301 SW 16 St in Renton; SeaTac facilities at 17801 International Blvd (airport), 19300 International Blvd (corporate headquarters), 19521 International Blvd (general office), 20833 International Blvd (Gold Coast Center), 18650 Alaska Service Rd (hangar), 19235 International Blvd (hub), 20313 28 Ave S (McGee), and 20529 24 Ave South, Suite 100 (Stinson); and Spokane International Airport at 9000 W Airport Dr in Spokane.

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That spread touches nearly every function of the airline’s regional operation — from the corporate headquarters and general offices to the airport hub, maintenance hangar and administrative centers.

What Happens on Dec. 31

The first employment separations are scheduled to begin on or about Dec. 31, giving affected employees roughly two months of notice from the Oct. 30 filing date. Christin Leise, Alaska Airlines’ managing director of people operations, is listed in the notice as the contact for employee questions.

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The notice’s statement that bumping rights do not apply marks a significant limit on workers’ options: under typical layoff procedures, senior employees can displace junior workers in other roles, but that pathway is closed here. The only recourse mentioned is the possibility that some employees may return to a former union position.

The timing lands the cuts at the end of the year, a period when families in the Seattle area are managing holiday expenses, and it follows a separate call from Alaska Airlines — alongside Microsoft, Starbucks and Costco — for Seattle public safety improvements, a reminder that the company is simultaneously pressing civic leaders on the conditions it says affect its business in the region.