Thomas Cook has resorted to going to the High Court today in a bid to evict about 40 employees holding a sit-in in a Dublin store.
The occupation, now in its fourth day after beginning on July 31, was sparked by the company’s decision to bring forward the closure of its two shops and a Direct Holidays outlet in Dublin.
The workers, who are occupying its Grafton Street branch, are also fighting for a better redundancy deal than the five weeks’ pay for every year’s service currently on the table.
Thomas Cook secured a temporary injunction against the sit-in the day after the protest began, but although the 30 Direct Holidays employees withdrew from the protests, the Thomas Cook workers have stood their ground.
Thomas Cook chief executive officer UK and Ireland mainstream travel Pete Constanti said the stores were shutting because they had recorded “considerable losses” over the last five years, and the magnitude of the losses meant there was no viable alternative.
He added: “Thomas Cook is offering far more than it is legally required to in respect of a redundancy package, and we are confident that we’ve taken every possible step to ensure this unfortunate decision has been handled as sensitively as possible.”
The company was keen to talk to the workers and willing to go to arbitration if necessary, a spokesperson said.