Airbus Mobile to start hiring again

MOBILE, Ala. - Mobile’s Airbus plant plans to start hiring again following United Airlines' jet purchase. The air carrier wants 70 Airbus A320s, many of which will be built in Mobile. As COVID-19 numbers drop, air travel is on the rise and aircraft plants are ramping up. “The U.S. airlines appear to be in a relatively healthy condition, certainly on the domestic side and keen to re-enter into picking up their aircraft, especially out of Mobile. That’s the good news,” said Airbus Vice President Daryl Taylor, who directs the company’s assembly line in Mobile. “The great news is we got through 2020 without a reduction of workforce,” Taylor said. “So, we had reached right around 1,000 direct employees at the beginning of 2020. While we didn’t hire during 2020 except for a very few, very critical positions that we had to backfill, we also didn’t actively reduce workforce. This year, we plan to recruit about 150 employees here in Mobile. We’ll pass 1,100 active head counts here during 2021 and if you look at our total head count that’s onsite, when you add our suppliers, we outsource several of our work packages, logistics, maintenance and things like that, we’re probably closer to 1,350, 1,400 and I would expect that to be closer to 1,500 by the end of the year.” (Source: Alabama Public Radio, 07/08/21)