Thomas Cook announces 2,500 jobs to go in effort to revive profitability

As part of its ongoing Business Transformation, Thomas Cook Group plc has announced that it has began a consultation process to restructure its UK business, which would see the Group's UK workforce reduced by 2,500 full-time roles. Job losses would mostly be from back-office functions and its retail network, including some store closures. However it has not yet been revealed which stores are to close.

The Group currently employs 15,500 across the UK & Ireland.  The cost benefit of these changes, and the costs of achieving them, have already been included in the cost-out numbers previously announced.

Peter Fankhauser, CEO Continental Europe & UK, commented: "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."