Luxair’s human resources director, , has announced his decision to “turn to new professional challenges”, the company told its employees several weeks ago. The company did not give further details on the reasons for his departure. It must therefore find a replacement for him, at a time when the airline’s HR challenges are in the spotlight.

Unions have, and have requested a tripartite meeting on the subject. It should take place on 26 September, but will focus on the financial health of the company, announced transport minister  (déi Gréng). Luxair CEO, , has already expressed concern about the company’s financial health in an

Many applications

“It is never a good sign when people in key positions leave at difficult times,” commented Robert Fornieri, deputy secretary general at trade union LCGB. He added that this was a “personal interpretation” of the employees’ feelings, as the precise reasons for the departure of the HR director had not been communicated. However, this does not change much for the discussions with the union, which are taking place “directly with management”.

This was confirmed by Michelle Cloos of the trade union OGBL executive board. Even if “in the end, it is management that takes the decisions”, she hopes that the future HR director will be “geared towards stakeholder dialogue and listening to the employees”. Whether it is an internal or external person, “what matters is the result”.

Feith did not wish to comment on Labarsouque’s departure. Two weeks after the job offer was posted online, he said he had received “a lot of very good applications”, so the company’s situation does not seem to be complicating recruitment. At the time of writing, Linkedin showed a total of 91 applicants for the job.

Leadership and good interpersonal skills

“The challenges at Luxair are numerous, we need a highly motivated management team that is still willing to work in crisis mode. There is a lot of work to do”, said Feith. “We have had internal and external applications. We will look at them all openly.” The CEO spoke of the need for “knowledge of Luxembourg”. He added that he would like to “increase the proportion of women in management positions”. The position will be filled “as soon as possible”.

“Leadership, good interpersonal skills and decision-making abilities” are some of the qualities required in the .

Labarsouque took up his post a little over a year ago, in June 2021, after several years as head of human resources at RBC Investor & Treasury Services. His departure is set for September. Asked about the reasons for this departure, he did not respond to Paperjam’s requests for comment.

This story was first published in French on . It has been translated and edited for Delano.