NEW YORK, April 22 — Car-rental giant Hertz is laying off 10,000 employees in North America in the wake of the coronavirus's massive hit to tourism, the company said yesterday.

Hertz said the downsizing, equivalent to 26.3 per cent of its global workforce, was necessary following increased cancellations and declining forward bookings as travel and tourism slows to a crawl.

The company disclosed the job cuts in a securities filing, saying the cuts were effective April 14 for non-union staff and April 21 for unionised workers.

Hertz expects to spend US$30 million (RM131.2 million) connected to the action, mostly on severance payments. — AFP