Thomas Cook: More than 100 NI staff lose jobs
- Published
More than 100 Thomas Cook staff in Northern Ireland have lost their jobs as a result of the company's collapse.
The 178-year-old tour operator "ceased trading with immediate effect" at 02:00 BST on Monday putting 22,000 jobs at risk worldwide.
About 6,000 Northern Ireland holidaymakers are among 150,000 people who must be brought home amid uncertainty over future holiday plans.
Thomas Cook had 23 stores in Northern Ireland.
The first flight bringing passengers home following the collapse of the business landed at Belfast International Airport at about 20:40 BST on Monday.
About 200 passengers were flying from Antalya in southern Turkey.
Meanwhile, Paul Dunn, from County Antrim, is due to fly home from Tunisia on Wednesday but is unsure if this will happen.
Mr Dunn is with his wife, Gael, at the Les Orangers beach resort in the town of Hammamet.
Speaking to BBC News NI on Monday, he said a Thomas Cook rep, who no longer has a job, had come to his resort to try and help guests.
"He came in and he's trying to be upbeat and help as best he can.
"We were able ourselves to get registered with the CAA [Civil Aviation Authority].
"Our flights are not being published till Wednesday, so I still don't know".
The CAA is co-ordinating efforts to bring affected holidaymakers home.
Matthew and Aaron are worried about their wedding plans
For two couples from Northern Ireland, who are due to get married, the news could not have come at a worse time.
Matthew Moore, from Belfast, is marrying his partner Aaron in Cyprus in October but they are worried that it will not go ahead.
"My heart just sank when we heard the news. These past few days have been very traumatising.
"We are all flying with Thomas Cook as it is the only company that have direct flights from Belfast to Larnaca Airport".
He said that Thomas Cook going under would mean they are "left with 26 guests out of pocket."
'Unsure wedding could proceed'
Cookstown couple Peter Mitchell, 36, and his fiancée Samantha McMenemy, 32, were due to fly to Cyprus on Wednesday and their wedding was booked in Paphos for 30 September.
The couple said they had paid about £7,000 for their holiday package.
Although he has booked alternative flights for £1,000, he said they were unsure if the wedding itself could proceed when they arrive.
"We have been planning this wedding for two years and have been paying it by standing order since May 2018," he said.
"We are going to have to see when we get out there," he added
Ms McMenemy said they had had a "very stressful weekend".
"I have shed a few tears, it is not something you think will happen," she said.
'Demanding payment'
Stephen and Annie McCoy from Northern Ireland are staying at Poseidon Resorts in Benidorm.
They arrived last Saturday for a two-week break and has said the hotel is demanding payment from guests.
"We are being told we must pay the bill in full for our holiday or we will need to leave the hotel," Mrs McCoy told BBC News NI. .
"I won't be paying something I have already paid. This holiday was £1,600 and I've worked hard for this."
Rhonda Evans said daughters Kaytee and Isla could not believe they were going to see Santa
County Londonderry mother Rhonda Evans had booked a dream Christmas trip to Lapland to see Santa for her daughters.
For daughters Kaytee and Isla it was "a dream come true".
"Because Kaytee is going to big school next year it is sort of our last chance to go. They got it on Christmas morning last year," she said.
"They can't believe they are going to see the real Santa."
The family had planned to fly to Lapland from Edinburgh and fly back to Northern Ireland via Manchester.
In total the trip cost more than £3,000.
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"I told them the company we booked with went broke. Kaytee was quite disappointed and cried about it.
"They don't know they are not going, they know there is a problem with it now."
She has yet to receive any communication from Thomas Cook.
Peter Fankhauser, Thomas Cook's chief executive, said the firm's collapse was a "matter of profound regret".
Commenting as the company entered compulsory liquidation, external, Mr Fankhauser also apologised to the firm's "millions of customers, and thousands of employees".
The tour operator's failure puts 22,000 jobs at risk worldwide, including 9,000 in the UK.
- Published22 September 2019
