British Airways to close Toronto call centre

British Airways plans to close its Toronto call centre by December this year.

The airline has seen the number of calls handled at its three North American centres fall by more than 25 percent over the last two years as the popularity of online booking and other self-service options continue to grow.

At the same time, with fewer people needed to manage the reduced number of calls, the combined occupancy of the centres has fallen to only 58 percent.

Consequently, British Airways said it has decided to close its Toronto call centre and consolidate its North American operations between its call centres in New York and Jacksonville, Florida.

Approximately 200 Toronto staff will be affected by the closure.

Robin Hayes, Executive Vice President, the Americas said, "This has been an extremely difficult decision and it is not one that has been taken lightly.

"It involved an extensive review of our property requirements to ensure we have maximum occupancy of our call centres. Our lease terms in Toronto allow us to leave the current building with minimal exit costs."

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