The Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association will today tell government that former Thomas Cook employees must be paid “in full and without delay”.
The union which represents Cook staff in the UK is attending a meeting of the government’s ‘national taskforce for Thomas Cook’ in Manchester.
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TSSA general secretary Manuel Cortes will tell business secretary Andrea Leadsom that ministers have a duty to ensure former Thomas Cook employees are paid what they are owed following the firm’s collapse.
Cortes has already called for Leadsom’s resignation for failing to hold any discussions with Cook before it went out of business.
He said: “We are stressing to the government they must ensure that workers are paid what they are owed in full and without delay.
“This means for the work carried out to the point at which the company went bust – but also redundancy payments and any other entitlements. This is no small beer for those who have lost their jobs through no fault of their own. In many cases it will likely amount to several months pay.
“I will be telling ministers and everyone else at the taskforce meeting – the choice is simple – pay up or be sued.”
The comments follow the decision of the union’s executive committee to pay £300 to Cook members each from its benevolent fund.
Cortes said: “I’m pleased to say that not only is our union continuing to fight for Thomas Cook workers by pressing the Government, we are also providing support on jobs and training opportunities and we have now made sure a valuable payment goes to each and every member who was employed at Thomas Cook.
“We are doing this because we want to ensure that these workers can buy food and are able to support their families at this difficult time. This is an act of solidarity brought about by the collective strength of our union and shows why everyone should be in a union.
“We have acted to financially assist our members at Thomas Cook – now the government must make sure the liquidators do the same.”
More: Video: Thomas Cook staff march on Westminster
Tailor Made Travel abandons move to re-open ex-Thomas Cook outlets
The Interview: Thomas Cook ‘failed to grasp rescue chance in 2012’