Business

Thousands of jobs at risk as travel firm Tui faces ‘greatest crisis’

Holiday giant Tui is looking to cut up to 8,000 roles worldwide with the firm calling Covid-19 the “greatest crisis” the industry has faced.

The UK’s biggest tour operator posted losses of €845.8 million (£747m) in the first half of 2020, compared to €289.1 million (£255m) in the same period 12 months previously.

Tui has 12 stores across Northern Ireland.

The Anglo-German company said: “We are targeting to permanently reduce our overhead cost base by 30% across the entire group.

“This will have an impact on potentially 8,000 roles globally that will either not be recruited or reduced.”

Fritz Joussen, chief executive of the firm, said the company should “emerge from the crisis stronger”.

He added: “It will be a different Tui and it will find a different market environment than before the pandemic.

“This will require cuts: in investments, in costs, in our size and our presence around the world.

“We must be leaner than before, more efficient, faster and more digital.”

The company’s report said: “The tourism industry has weathered a number of macroeconomic shocks throughout the most recent decades, however the Covid-19 pandemic is unquestionably the greatest crisis the industry and Tui has ever faced.”

It added that losses also came as a result of the grounding of the Boeing 737 Max aircraft after two crashes with other airlines.