Staff to get jobs back as travel shops to reopen
EVERY Thomas Cook store in Wales is set to reopen imminently with its original staff in place.
Earlier this week Hays Travel announced it was to buy all 555 UK branches of the beleaguered holiday chain which went bust last month, leaving more than 9,000 people across the company facing unemployment.
Now the Sunderland-based independent travel agent has announced that it hopes to employ all 2,500 of those who lost their jobs in the store closures.
It said that includes the 10 Thomas Cook branches in Wales including Cardiff, Swansea, Port Talbot and Brecon, which will shortly be back in business with their original staff at the helm.
A spokesperson for Hays Travel wouldn’t be drawn on when the re-openings will happen but said they are expected to happen “as soon as possible”.
In a statement from Hayes Travel, owners John and Irene Hays said that “excellent progress” was currently being made.
“We are re-opening all of the 555 Thomas Cook shops as soon as possible and we are making excellent progress to date. There are 1,210 people on the books now with more offers and contracts going out by the hour.
“Our intention is to keep the stores trading profitably and building on some of the Hays Travel business approach and ethos, supported by our brilliant people, we are in good stead. We have opened over 20 shops in the last few hours and more will open in the coming days.”
There were more than 150,000 Thomas Cook customers abroad when the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) confirmed that Thomas Cook, the world’s oldest holiday company, had ceased trading with immediate effect on September 23.
Many tourists spoke of the “utter carnage” they faced as increasing numbers of flights were cancelled or delayed.
The government asked the CAA to launch a repatriation programme. Operation Matterhorn was put in place to return all Thomas Cook holidaymakers to the UK over two weeks.
At the time of Thomas Cook’s collapse, around 9,000 people had lost their jobs.