Former bosses of the infamous holiday tour firm, Thomas Cook, came under fire after news regarding the excessive bonuses and payouts they received surfaced amid the unfortunate collapse of the company that has led to thousands of holidaymakers being stranded in different airports overseas and thousands of their employees to lose their jobs.
For the last 12 years, bosses of the fallen company have received more than £35m amid the financial struggles the company is facing. For one, Manny Fontenla-Novoa, the leader of the company who led the luxurious acquisition spree that hurt the company’s finances, £17m in just over four years as boss of Thomas Cook. Part of what he earned comes from the bonus he was awarded after slashing 2,800 jobs following the merger with MyTravel. As the company faces its unfortunate collapse, Fontenla-Novoa quit his job in 2011.
Furthermore, the boss who replaced him, Harriet Green, was paid £4.7m for less than three years plus a share bonus worth a further £5.6m. On top of that, Green also charges the company more than £80,000-a-year to cover her hotel bills in a luxury hotel chain she stays during the week.
Peter Fankhauser, who was in charge when the company collapsed, earned £8.3m, including £4.3m in bonuses.
Yesterday, the travel and vacation booking firm was forced into compulsory liquidation as the negotiations to save the company has failed.
“Despite considerable efforts, those discussions have not resulted in an agreement between the company’s stakeholders and proposed new money providers. The company’s board has therefore concluded that it had no choice but to take steps to enter into compulsory liquidation with immediate effect,” the firm said in a press release.
An application for the compulsory liquidation has been sent to the High Court and was immediately approved today. The company is working with different relevant agencies in order to repatriate all affected customers.
