Major industries hit particularly hard by the COVID-19 pandemic are almost certainly going to need government bailouts, say experts and business organizations.

The question is when, and just how much money is needed.

Most notably, the airline business has taken a massive hit. WestJet will be cutting its nearly 14,000-person workforce in half through a series of early retirements, and voluntary and involuntary leaves. Some of the leaves will be temporary. Air Canada’s pilots’ union has said that up to 600 pilots will go on unpaid leave in the coming months, while the airline’s flight attendants union has said just over 5,000 flight attendants will be temporarily laid off.

Both major airlines have also dramatically reduced their flying schedules.

“There’s no doubt about it that the aviation industry is going to need to some help,” said John Gradek, faculty lecturer and program coordinator in aviation leadership at McGill University, and a former Air Canada executive.

In Gradek’s view, the industry could do with two things from government: an order shutting down Canadian airspace and a bailout.

“All expenses would be shut down. That will provide them some breathing room,” Gradek said of an order closing the airspace. “But they will also need money to get back up and running again.”

He estimated that the airline industry would need between $5 billion and $10 billion, but said the ultimate amount will depend on how long the pandemic prevents the business from being fully operational again. And it also remains to be seen whether such help would come in the form of loans or grants or both. (Meanwhile, in the United States, the airline industry has been asking for $50 billion (U.S.).)

“If I were in the shoes of the government, I would want as much money as possible flowing to the actual employees. So how do we ensure that?” Gradek said, arguing that if it provides a bailout, the government would likely want to get more involved in the business, such as having a few seats on the airline’s board of directors.

Financial relief should be coming soon for people out of work, including in the airline industry, after the federal government unveiled a program Wednesday to provide $2,000 a month to people who have lost their jobs due to COVID-19. Payments would last as long as four months.

“Help is on the way,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says in announcing the emergency response benefit that will provide $2,000 a month for four months for people who have lost their income because of COVID-19. The Canada Emergency Response Benefit combines two benefits announced last week to streamline application process.

Tae Hoon Oum, a professor in the Sauder School of Business at the University of British Columbia and an aviation and transportation expert, said government should be thinking about financial assistance for the industry given that it’s the federal government’s advisory against non-essential travel worldwide that has partly led to a reduction in demand for the airlines.

“We may be able to control COVID-19 in a quicker way,” he said, “but the airlines will suffer financially, and there is a need to help them out — both for society and the airlines.”

He said the industry is suffering “disproportionately large losses” and some airlines, particularly the smaller ones, will likely go bankrupt without financial help.

So far the federal government hasn’t said if it will be bailing out any specific industry. Finance Minister Bill Morneau announced almost two weeks ago a $10 billion credit line to loan money to businesses, but organizations have said far more money is needed, and fast.

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Aside from the airlines, other industries hit especially hard by the pandemic include the energy sector and transportation companies. Bombardier announced this week that it is halting all non-essential work across the country, including plane and rail production, putting more than 12,000 employees on unpaid leave.

The Business Council of Canada called on the federal government Wednesday for “significant new measures” to help companies across various sectors. The organization said a rescue package of at least $75 billion is required beyond the $10 billion already announced, pointing out that companies must remain intact if the economy is ever going to recover once the worst of the pandemic is over.

“There needs to be a much greater sense of urgency,” said Brian Kingston, the Business Council’s vice-president of policy. “(Companies) are going to need support, it needs to come quickly and we urge the government to act immediately. What the government has announced so far is a good first step, but it’s simply not enough.”

Correction - March 31, 2020: This article was edited from a previous version that misspelled the name of the University of British Columbia’s business school.

With files from Star wire services

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