Home NEWS More than 100 former Thomas Cook staff take legal action against the collapsed travel firm

More than 100 former Thomas Cook staff take legal action against the collapsed travel firm

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More than 100 former Thomas Cook staff take legal action against the collapsed travel firm

More than 100 former Thomas Cook employees have launched legal action against the collapsed travel firm after losing their jobs.

It comes after it was also revealed that the travel firm were still hiring more staff just days before it went into liquidation.

Former staff members claim the firm acted unlawfully in their dismissal and have now appointed lawyers to seek redress through an employment tribunal.

Ex-staff members said the company failed to keep them up to date with the status of the operator.

Lawyers from Simpson Miller have now said that thousands of former employees could be due a windfall.

More than 100 former Thomas Cook employees are bringing legal action to the firm (a Thomas Cook worker with the sign in the background)

Current employment laws state that workers are entitled to a Protective Award if they are made redundant from an office. The office has to employ more than 20 people and those affected could be entitled to up to 90 days’ pay.

However, if a staff member is made redundant due to the insolvency of a company then the government’s Insolvency Service may have to pay up. However this would be capped at 8 weeks’ pay, with a further cap of £525 per week.

A former manager at the collapsed travel giant said that redundant workers have not received three weeks of owed wages, forcing some to use ‘charity food vouchers’. 

The Protective award claim must be filed within three months of the date of dismissal in collective redundancy situations. 

One worker, Claire Hoang, who is part of the legal bid said she woke up on Monday with no job and is now looking for solutions.

Claire Hoang (pictured above) said the company had told her not to worry and that they would ‘sort it out’

‘I’ve lost that month’s income. I’ve also had over £700 of expenses I’ll never get back.

‘Company troubles had been hanging over us – but we always thought they’d be a bailout. We were always given the mantra: ‘don’t worry about it we’ll sort it out’, she told the BBC.

Ms Hoang from Manchester added that she is desperate for other workers without a job to join the campaign to secure lost pay.

She said: ‘It was obviously horrible, but then I’m lucky to have a husband in work who can help support me through this. There have been others who have had to turn to the benefits system and charity food vouchers to get through it.

What is a Protective Award?

A Protective Award is a form of compensation that can be given to former staff members.

It can be given when staff are moved from one company to another and their employer fails to engage with them.

The award can also be given if 20 or more employees are made redundant at a workplace and the employer fails to properly inform them.

It is the legal duty of the employer to inform the staff members.

When this has been breached it can be brought to an Employment Tribunal. 

Workers can get up to 90 days’ pay in cases of redundancy and up to 13 for employment transfers.

However if an employee is made redundant due to insolvency then the government’s Insolvency Service may have to pay.

This would be capped at 8 weeks’ pay or £525 a week. 

There is no minimum length of service to claim the Protection Award. 

‘After seeing how many people were in exactly the same position as me, I wanted to get involved in the efforts to recover whatever we can and urge as many people as possible to join.

‘For the past six months we had been told that it would all be okay, and it was only really on Friday that we knew there was trouble.

‘Management must have known the situation but still employed new staff – I met one lady who only moved to Manchester to work for Thomas Cook two weeks ago.’

She added that she was angry about how the Government failed to intervene and cover the £200 million funding gap, despite reported support from governments in Germany and Turkey.

‘To see the German government giving the company its backing and helping Condor stay afloat is positive news for them, but does feel like a kick in the teeth to be honest,’ she said.

‘We haven’t seen that support from the Government in the UK. But there has been a huge outpouring of support from ordinary people and business and that has been so heartening to see.’

This is while one man claimed he had been headhunted over the summer and that he hadn’t even seen a pay cheque before the company was liquidated.

David (not his real name) said a senior executive at the firm met him face to face to reassure him of the legitimacy of the businesses.

‘We were told there was a recapitalisation in the works – and that it was quite simple and always happen. Then last week the message changed. The deal was still a game changer, but there will be a lot of noise in the media and we should ignore it.

‘Then on Friday we were told the next 48 hours are critical and the negotiations are in a critical phase. The same day letters went out to people offering them jobs.’

David said it had been ’embarrassing’ having to sign onto the dole, and that being unemployed had already started to eat into his savings.

He added that the whole situation ‘demonstrates how poorly managed the whole thing was.’

When a company is preparing to make redundancies it has to consult its staff members, letting them know their jobs could be at risk and offering them different phasing packages such as a cut in hours.

Many Thomas Cook employees have said they were not offered this courtesy and that the first they had heard of the situation was when it went bust.

One flight had been in the air when the company went into liquidation with the crew only learning their fate when they landed.

Employment lawyer Aneil Balgobin said that 9,000 families have lost a breadwinner and that ‘£2,000-£3,000’ makes a difference when someone is job hunting.

A spokesperson for the Thomas Cook liquidators said: ‘We will co-operate with the tribunal process during the liquidation.’

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