As Airbus prepares to ramp up commercial aircraft production, it has announced that it will hire more than 13,000 additional staff globally in 2023.
“In 2022 we welcomed more than 13,000 new employees within Team Airbus around the world, in a complex environment which tested our resilience and attractiveness as a global employer,” stated Thierry Baril, the Chief Human Resources & Workplace Officer at Airbus.
The company indicated that the newly-hired personnel would be instrumental in supporting its efforts to ramp up production and the European plane maker’s “ambitious decarbonization roadmap and preparing the future of aviation”.
“We call on talented individuals from all over the world to join us in our journey to make sustainable aerospace a reality and to help us build a better, more diverse and inclusive workplace for all our employees,” Baril added.
The emphasis will be on technical and manufacturing profiles and on new roles that would support Airbus’ long-term future, such as energies, cyber and digital. The majority (9,000) of the newly-created roles will be in Europe, with a third of the total number being recent graduates.
Currently, Airbus’ staff headcount comes to over 130,000 globally, including its Final Assembly Lines in Europe, North America and China.
The manufacturer has struggled to hit its delivery targets throughout 2022, adjusting the target twice before settling on 700 aircraft deliveries. However, due to a complex supply chain environment, it failed to manage this and the European Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) delivered only 661 aircraft. Airbus warned investors that it would not be able to achieve that target in early December 2022. However, the OEM added that it would not have a material impact on its financial results.
Tech jobs at Airbus
Airbus’ 2023 recruitment drive will be worldwide, with emphasis on technical and manufacturing profiles, as well as acquisition of new skills supporting the company’s long term vision, in areas such as new energies, cyber and digital.
This creates a perfect opportunity for tech industry workers who were let go as part of an industry wide downsizing drive.
Bloomberg reports that Airbus will look to take on some workers laid off by technology giants, especially as they have skill sets in areas the company is trying to develop.
Big technology companies such as Google, Microsoft, Amazon and Meta (Facebook) have laid off more than 70,000 jobs in the previous year, and job cuts everywhere else in the sector are piling up.
Over-hiring during the pandemic, mounting pressure from investors, the sector maturing too quickly due to rapid growth are just some of the reasons why tech companies are downsizing.
Airbus currently employs more than 130,000 people across its businesses worldwide.