Eastar Jet plans to dismiss 605 employees on Wednesday as the airline industry struggles to stay afloat amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

With the latest cut, Eastar Jet will go down to a staff of 590. This figure is expected to slip further to around 400 following additional restructuring measures. 

At the time the company suspended all of its domestic and international flight operations in March due to the surge in COVID-19 cases, the number of employees amounted to roughly one-thousand-680. 

A company official said the latest cut came as part of efforts to sell the company, citing that it’s difficult to find a buyer with the company’s existing size. 

Eastar’s unionized pilots denounced the decision, saying management wants to cut down on employees to facilitate the liquidation of the company.