Thomas Cook seeking 23 Irish redundancies

THOMAS COOK is seeking up to 23 redundancies from its Irish workforce after the troubled company posted a pre-tax loss of £398 million (€474 million) for the year to September.

Consultation with the company’s 73-strong Irish workforce, based in Park West, Dublin, began this week. Capacity at its Irish operations has fallen by 70 per cent over the last four years, a spokesman said.

London-based Thomas Cook said yesterday it would shut 200 loss-making shops in the UK as part of a turnaround plan for the company, which last month received a rescue plan from lenders.

The world’s oldest travel company shut its remaining stores in Ireland in 2009. It operates in Ireland under a number of brands including Panorama and Sunworld, which are marketed through travel agencies. It also sells holidays directly through its website, which is run from Park West.

Thomas Cook, which is listed on the FTSE 250, has seen its share price fall steeply since the company announced it was seeking help from lenders. Shares closed 0.3p lower at 14.5p yesterday.

The company said 660 jobs would be at risk as it closed 200 of its 1,300 shops in Britain. It is also seeking to cut its airline fleet to 35 from 41, and invest in its online business.

Meanwhile, TUI AG, the owner of TUI travel, a competitor to Thomas Cook, said yesterday that pre-tax profit in the 12 months to the end of September rose to €206.8 million, up from €177.8 million a year earlier.

Results for TUI Travel, which operates Falcon Holidays and Thomson Holidays in Ireland, show that the UK and Ireland business posted a rise in operating profit to £149 million (€177 million), up from £127 million (€151 million) in 2010.

There are currently 33 Falcon Holidays travel shops, which offer package holidays, operating in Ireland. Thomson Holidays has no retail presence.

In its results for the year ended September 30th, 2011, TUI Travel noted the increase in the percentage of online bookings during the year, with 39 per cent of all bookings made online.