{"id":19147,"date":"2019-10-02T16:55:19","date_gmt":"2019-10-02T15:55:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/unitelive.org\/?p=19147"},"modified":"2020-11-12T12:55:08","modified_gmt":"2020-11-12T12:55:08","slug":"thomas-cook-voices-parliament","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/?p=19147","title":{"rendered":"‘You are not alone’"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>\n

Hundreds of Thomas Cook workers descended on Parliament to demand answers from the government and from the company to whom they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve loyally dedicated years of their working lives.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The workers, largely cabin crew, vented their fury over failing to be paid their wages after travel firm Thomas Cook went bust last week (September 23). The insolvency service confirmed earlier this week that workers will not be paid for the most recent pay period and instead will become Thomas Cook creditors.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

This has left some workers up to seven weeks without pay.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Delivering two separate petitions \u00e2\u20ac\u201c one to Downing Street demanding a full inquiry into Thomas Cook\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s collapse and another to business secretary Andrea Leadsom\u00c2\u00a0demanding that she intervene and ensure workers get paid their wages \u00e2\u20ac\u201c the protesting Thomas Cook workers, Unite members, told harrowing stories of their final days on the job.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Emma French, from Newcastle, was on holiday in Jamaica, due to fly back on a Thomas Cook airline the Monday the company went bust.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bMy first thought was \u00e2\u20ac\u201c this is happening; this isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t real,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 she said. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bWe were promised that the company would find a buyer. Reality didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t hit for me until I boarded the repatriation flight back home with Virgin. The Virgin crew put their arms around us and told us how sorry they were.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Mother and daughter Nicky and Charlotte (pictured), both Thomas Crew cabin crew workers until the company went bust, told UniteLive of their shock when they first heard the news that they no longer had jobs.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Mother<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bBut that shock and sadness turns to anger when you feel really frustrated and let down by the company \u00e2\u20ac\u201c when all these stories come out about the CEOs raking in so much in bonuses while the rest of us suffer,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 daughter Charlotte said.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bWe didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t find out that we wouldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t get paid until quite late,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 Nicky explained. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bWe\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve had hardly any contact from the company at all. The day were supposed to get our payslips is the day we got our redundancy notice.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Now Nicky and Charlotte have found themselves in a position they may never have imagined \u00e2\u20ac\u201c Charlotte\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s sister, one of three of Nicky\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s daughters, is now supporting the whole family.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bMy sister is paying all the bills at the moment because my other sister is a full-time student and now that we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re both not working, she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the only one,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 Charlotte said.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Now, Nicky said, both she and Charlotte have come to demand answers.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bWhy didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t they sell the airline? Why did they let us go under? The airline was profitable,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 Nicky told UniteLive. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bThis needs to be investigated by the government. This didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have to happen.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Like Nicky and Charlotte, cabin crew manager and Unite branch secretary Martin Browne (pictured below) knows what it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s like to work in a Thomas Cook \u00e2\u20ac\u0098family\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 of breadwinners \u00e2\u20ac\u201c he and his wife had forty years working at the airline between them.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bWe\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve just been dumped. This has devastated us. Yesterday I went for my Universal Credit interview. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve never been unemployed \u00e2\u20ac\u201c ever. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve had to borrow money from a friend to make sure my bills were paid this month. But at the minute, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve still got no job so I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m not sure how I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m going to pay it back.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"thomas<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Thomas Cook workers face not only the loss of their jobs and wages, but many also told of losing a cherished part of their identity.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Leanne, a cabin crew manager who has worked for Thomas Cook for more than two decades, said she fears not being able to find another job in the industry again.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bI work part-time because I have two children, and outside of Thomas Cook, working part-time in cabin crew is virtually impossible,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 she explained. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bI just about managed on my job with the money, the kids, and the time I needed to spend with them and what I needed to do to support them. I keep having heart palpitations thinking, ‘What am I going to do now’?<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bPeople don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t understand. Cabin crew is like a big family. We all go away together on trips, we cry together, we laugh together, we drink together and everyone supports each other. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not like a normal job,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 Leanne said, fighting back tears. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bI\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m absolutely terrified thinking about the future \u00e2\u20ac\u201c about supporting my daughters. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s really frightening.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, alongside many of the shadow cabinet and dozens of Labour MPs, joined the protesting Thomas Cook workers in a show of support and solidarity.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Jeremy<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Addressing the workers, Corbyn [pictured above] said, \u00e2\u20ac\u015b[Thomas Cook] directors walked away with massive bonuses \u00e2\u20ac\u201c they knew what was happening and they paid themselves, and left you high and dry. You\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re the ones who showed due diligence, you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re the ones who stood up for the public; you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re the ones who behaved responsibly, not them.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

He lambasted the UK government for failing to act, while Thomas Cook subsidiaries in Germany, Scandinavia and Spain were assisted by their respective governments so that jobs were saved.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015b[Labour] might not be in government yet, but I say this to you \u00e2\u20ac\u201c any problem like this in the future, a Labour government will intervene; it will protect a public asset; it will protect jobs; and a Labour government would protect a company with such a great name as Thomas Cook, which after all was publicly owned for a very long time.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Corbyn pledged that Labour in opposition will work with Thomas Cook workers now and do all it can to make sure their wages are paid.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Unite assistant general secretary Diana Holland also vowed the union would leave no stone unturned in securing justice and unpaid wages for its members in Thomas Cook.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"thomas<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bNobody should be treated like this. There were five offers to buy [Thomas Cook] \u00e2\u20ac\u201c how come it was grounded? How come we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re in this position? We have to ask those questions and we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve got to look at what we can do to support everyone here.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

She told of the many Unite members she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s spoken to who have dedicated their lives to a company that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s turned their backs on them.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bThey\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re saying, what now? Who\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s looking after me? [I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m here to say] we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re not forgetting you. You are part of our bigger family \u00e2\u20ac\u201c and we will make sure as a union to let you know that you are not alone.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hundreds of Thomas Cook workers descended on Parliament to demand answers from the government and from the company to whom they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve loyally dedicated years of their working lives.   The workers, largely cabin crew, vented their fury over failing to be paid their wages after travel firm Thomas Cook went bust last week (September 23). […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":19152,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[17],"tags":[1233],"wps_subtitle":"Unite Thomas Cook members make their voices heard at Parliament","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19147"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=19147"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19147\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24942,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19147\/revisions\/24942"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/19152"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=19147"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=19147"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=19147"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}