Thomas Cook to cut 2,500 jobs and close 195 stores

Published on 06/03/2013 15:24

Holiday firm Thomas Cook is cutting 2,500 jobs and closing 195 of its high street travel agencies, it has been announced.

The travel company, which is the oldest in the world and has stores in Crawley and Horley, announced the decision to cut jobs today (Wednesday March 6).

A spokesman said most of the cuts would be in back-office functions but added that some stores would close as part of a restructuring of the business.

Peter Fankhauser, Thomas Cook UK & Ireland’s CEO, said it was “never easy to make the decision to cut jobs” but the business needed to ensure its administrative costs were “as low as possible”.

He added: “It is never easy to make decisions that impact directly on our people, but we also owe it to our customers to shape the business effectively and ensure that, when they book their holiday with us, our administrative costs are as low as possible.

“As we improve and develop our online capabilities, maintaining a strong presence on the High Street is an important part of our omni-channel strategy.

“Even after these changes we will still have one of the largest retail networks in UK travel.

“It is essential that we operate with the right number of people as we move forward into the next era for our company, allowing us to meet the future needs of our customers more effectively.

“These proposals will mean a stronger Thomas Cook that continues to be a major employer in the UK dedicated to providing excellent holiday experiences to our 23 million customers.

“We are in consultation with our Unions and employee representative bodies to minimise the impact of these changes and I am speaking personally to all employees today to provide information and support through this period of consultation.”

The company has entered a 90-day consultation process with its UK employees. It is too early for the company to say which stores are affected.

The company has 1,069 stores in the UK and employs 15,500 people in the UK and Ireland.

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Thomas Cook to cut 2,500 jobs and close 195 stores

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