BRIDGE Travel staff are expected to bear the brunt of
redundancies resulting from the merger with Cresta Holidays after it was
revealed the new company is likely to be based in Cheshire.
The news comes as MyTravel confirms Cresta managing
director Steve Kimber will head up the new joint business, casting
further doubt over the future of Bridge’s current
management team.
But while MyTravel plans to use Cresta’s Altrincham
offices as the headquarters, it is also proposing to run both operators’
Disney programmes out of Bridge’s offices in
Broxbourne, Hertfordshire.
The plan has increased speculation Bridge’s Disney
programme could become direct-sell as the two operators have similar product
ranges. There is likely to be one product and reservation team based in
Broxbourne to run the Disneyland Resort Paris programmes offered by Cresta and
Bridge’s Paris Travel Service.
Sources claim most of Bridge’s 299 staff, including
reservations, finance and administration, fear they will lose their jobs
after a letter from the company stated
their positions are “at risk”. It is believed almost all the sales, marketing
and product jobs are earmarked to be axed.
Already several staff are preparing to tender their
resignation as they find employment elsewhere. Some employees are said to have
taken the recent news “very badly”.
However, Cresta staff have also been warned their jobs
are not guaranteed. Employees at both Bridge and Cresta remain in a 90-day consultation
period, which started on July 26.
A MyTravel spokeswoman said: “The consultation process
is ongoing and we are continuing conversations with staff.”
The Bridge and Cresta brands are unaffected and are to
be retained by MyTravel, but overlapping product is likely to be dropped longer
term.