Thomas Cook set to axe another 2,500 jobs (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)
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Thomas Cook set to axe another 2,500 jobs
12:24pm Wednesday 6th March 2013 in News
By Chris Holland, Business Reporter
Struggling travel giant Thomas Cook, which will close its call centre in Bradford city centre at the end of this month, is set to axe another 2,500 jobs.
The firm's Aldermanbury administration centre is being wound down and around 100 of the original 400 staff have already left. Two jobs fairs to help Cook staff find jobs with Crossflatts-based mortgage firm UKAR and other local companies were held in January.
In the latest announcement Cook said it planned to close 195 of its high street travel agencies and the jobs cuts would affect around 16 per cent of its 15,500 workforce in the UK and Ireland across its retail network as well as administration and back-office staff.
Thomas Cook said the moves were being made as part of a restructuring and to slash administration costs.
Peter Fankhauser, chief executive, Continental Europe & UK, said: "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."
