Delta will close Montreal and London call centers

By Kelly Yamanouchi

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines has decided to close its Montreal and London reservation offices, bringing some of the jobs back to the United States, said spokeswoman Susan Elliott. The closures will affect 142 employees in Montreal and 187 in London. The employees will have an opportunity to transfer to other positions within Delta or will get severance packages.

Due to the Montreal closure scheduled for Aug. 31, 2010, Delta will need U.S.-based French-speaking reservation agents, which will likely involve hiring new employees, Elliott said. She said the company has not yet determined where to house the French-speaking operation.

The London office will close in the fourth quarter of 2010 and Delta joint venture partner Air France will assume responsibility for those calls. Delta will take over responsibility for calls for the joint venture with Air France and Dutch carrier KLM in the United States and Canada.

Elliott said with the move, Delta is “looking to improve our call handling efficiency and to provide greater consistency for our joint venture customers.” Delta also has reservation centers in Santiago, Rio de Janeiro, Moscow, Singapore, Bangkok and Tokyo.