BA spokesman Paul Marston said the company was in "a very serious financial position" and was working hard to turn itself around with an aggressive cost-reduction program. The job losses and part-time work, which he said were voluntary, would be the equivalent of cutting 1,700 positions.
Marston said BA, which expects to see a "significant loss" for the second year running, needed the cuts in order to secure its future in an airline market which is likely to remain grim for some time.
"We do not see any green shoots of recovery just right yet," he said.
Marston also announced a companywide freeze on basic pay and said cabin crews operating out of London's Heathrow Airport would be downsized - so that the typical 747 jet flying from London's Heathrow Airport on a long-haul trip would take off carrying 14 members of crew instead of the usual complement of 15.
Marston said customers weren't likely to notice the difference. He added that changes would come into effect in the middle of November. He declined to say how much money BA hoped to save from cuts.
The job cuts and pay freeze have been discussed with staff for months, but negotiations with the unions have been deadlocked and BA said it needed to move now to ensure the company stayed alive.
"Without changes, we will lose more money with every month that passes," a company statement said. "It is essential we make ourselves more efficient if we are to ensure our long-term survival."
The airline added that it was "not altering anything that requires negotiation."
A call seeking comment from UNITE, Britain's biggest union, was not immediately returned.
The economic downturn has hit carriers like BA particularly hard as individual travelers and companies balk at paying for a seat in first or business class, particularly on short-haul flights. The airline posted a 94 million pound ($150 million) quarterly loss in July. Earlier that month, the airline announced plans to raise 600 million pounds to help it plug its deficits and convinced pilots at the airline to agree to a 2.6 percent pay cut.
U.S. airlines have also suffered amid the souring economy, higher fuel prices, and other issues.
Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines Inc., the world's biggest airline operator, said in June that its staff levels would be down more than 8,000 jobs by the end of 2009 compared to spring 2008.
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Associated Press Airlines Writer Harry R. Weber contributed to this report from Atlanta.
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