(Reuters) - Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd (N:NCLH) said on Wednesday it would furlough about 20% of its workforce through the end of July, as the cruise operator had to halt all voyages due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The furloughs affect shoreside U.S. workers and some international offices, a company spokesperson said in an emailed statement. Norwegian had about 4,000 shoreside employees and roughly 32,000 shipboard workers at the end of 2019.
"The ongoing suspension of cruise voyages is continuing to have a material impact on our business which requires further measures in order to weather these challenging and unprecedented times," the spokesperson said.
Cruise operators including Norwegian Cruise and rivals Carnival Corp (N:CCL) and Royal Caribbean Cruises (N:RCL) have been one of the worst hit companies, bleeding cash and scrambling for new funds to ride out the slowdown that could last longer than expected.
Norwegian warned of a quarterly loss and withdrew its 2020 forecast earlier this week, citing the uncertainty around the outbreak.
The company, which stopped new trips in March, last week extended the suspension of voyages through June 30.