P&O sailings suspended this morning

GTrimmer
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https://twitter.com/SimonCalder/status/1504389995007778818

 

"We have asked all ships to come alongside, in preparation for a company announcement. Until then, services from P&O will not run and we are advising travellers of alternative arrangements”

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Comments

  • SeasideBill
    SeasideBill Forum Participant Posts: 2,112
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    edited March 2022 #2

    Sounds ominous 🤔

  • peedee
    peedee Club Member Posts: 9,499
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    edited March 2022 #3

    Indeed but they have denied they are going into liquidation. Must be quite serious to tie up all the ships?

    peedee

     

     
  • SeasideBill
    SeasideBill Forum Participant Posts: 2,112
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    edited March 2022 #4

    He who hesitates won’t get on a ferry this summer!

  • TheShipmans
    TheShipmans Club Member Posts: 47
    edited March 2022 #5
  • peedee
    peedee Club Member Posts: 9,499
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    edited March 2022 #6

    >Hull Live<  has a running commentary on events. Looks like all the staff are being fired and have to  apply for their jobs via an agency!

    peedee

     
  • mbee1
    mbee1 Club Member Posts: 557
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    edited March 2022 #7

    The Times newspaper is reporting that all UK crew will be replaced by cheaper foreign crews.  Apparently, the new crews are waiting at the dockside ready to board.  If this is the case it's absolutely shocking and the Government should ban such practices.

    Haven't used P&O in a while having a preference for DFDS or Eurotunnel but, if this is true, I won't be using them again.

  • GTrimmer
    GTrimmer Club Member Posts: 169
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    edited March 2022 #8

    Likewise, I shall never use them again if it's true ! 

  • mbee1
    mbee1 Club Member Posts: 557
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    edited March 2022 #9

    All 800 crew have lost their jobs an have to reapply.  Fire and rehire.  Absolutely shocking.  This kind of action needs to be stopped by the Government.  many crew members are refusing to leave the vessels.

  • ValDa
    ValDa Forum Participant Posts: 3,005
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    edited March 2022 #10

    P&Os action (if this turns out to be true) is disgraceful, and I would have thought, against UK and EU law. I shall never use them again if this turns out to be the true reason for this 'Shutdown'.

     

  • GTrimmer
    GTrimmer Club Member Posts: 169
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    edited March 2022 #11

    THere are suggestions that 40% 0f the stock in DP World (P& O Ferries owners) is owned by Russians.

  • SeasideBill
    SeasideBill Forum Participant Posts: 2,112
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    edited March 2022 #12

    Tragic for all those personally affected, but are we really surprised? Keeping a travel sector business solvent over the last couple of years must be a huge struggle. I’m surprised we haven’t seen more, particularly from the aviation industry. The French helped Brittany Ferries big time, but apart from support measures for employers I’m not sure UK government made any special cases? P&O is a UK company owned by a parent company based in the UAE so maybe not so inclined?

  • easyonthegas
    easyonthegas Club Member Posts: 57
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    edited March 2022 #13

    Very poor employment practices for anyone to be told job is under threat via Zoom. Disgraceful behaviour P&O Ferries management, you were better than this.

  • Extugger
    Extugger Forum Participant Posts: 1,293
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    edited March 2022 #16

    100% Agree. CAMC, however, are a business and need to find lucrative streams of income. It’ll be a bit like asking Boris not to buy oil from Saudi Arabia 🤷‍♂️

  • SeasideBill
    SeasideBill Forum Participant Posts: 2,112
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    edited March 2022 #17

    Very true, too many of our key businesses are owned directly or indirectly by murky foreign interests and tax dodgers. Even private care homes who we entrust with the most vulnerable in our society are mostly owned by venture capitalists these days. We shouldn’t be surprised when they behave in the way they do with UK employees because they have little respect for anything other than absolute power and wealth. John Cadbury, William Lever, Titus Salt and other enlightened industrialists from previous generations would be turning in their graves!

  • Extugger
    Extugger Forum Participant Posts: 1,293
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    edited March 2022 #18

    Having seen the news and the reports on what has happened, I am absolutely appalled at the way P&O have behaved toward their employees, particularly as there are coach loads of ‘cheap replacement staff’ waiting to take their places. This is one very disgraceful company who deserves to go out of business. How is this possible?

  • Wherenext
    Wherenext Club Member Posts: 10,766
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    edited March 2022 #19

    Couldn't agree more David. I said to the OH as soon as I heard the news that the French would never allow this.

    It is my own opinion that industries integral to our means of survival, i.e food, energy, defence, health care systems, transportation links should all be at least 50% owned by the Government, that is the people. I have no problem with the other 50% or so being in the hands of private enterprise and no problem with dividends being paid as this is also integral to our own system of financial support, think of pensions, but if Brexit is to have any meaning at all it's about time that action not words were used to provide us with the means to feed ourselves, heat our homes and look after our populations health  without recourse to foreign ownership.

    Is it not possible to have a fleet of Government owned ferries, if only for use to transport goods across the Channel and North Sea?

    The HMG has just spent £Billions on HS2, which was said to be over budget once again this week. How many wind turbines, or tidal lagoons, or solar panelled farms, or fields with food growing in them could that have provided? It could have been used to buy a controlling interest in P&O itself!

    The owners of P&O apparently paid over £270million in dividends in 2020, yet are now pleading poverty. Disgraceful.

    I have unfortunately paid for my ferry to the Netherlands in May already with this shambles of a company but I will be looking at any means that I can to move the booking elsewhere tomorrow. I suspect I may be losing some money.

     

     

  • GTrimmer
    GTrimmer Club Member Posts: 169
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    edited March 2022 #20

    Having seen and heard a clip of te video heard b employees, they were clearly told that their dismissal was due to redundancy. This is NOT the case, since their jobs aere being filled with other people!

  • mickysf
    mickysf Club Member Posts: 6,492
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    edited March 2022 #21

    And links with the UAE which Boris visited and was in negotiations with yesterday, apparently the CEO of DP World also has strong associations with Putin. Allegedly!  😯

  • kenexton
    kenexton Forum Participant Posts: 306
    edited March 2022 #22

    I struggle to see how P and O can justify their actions under ETO given the way that they have "cut corners" on Employment Laws.No doubt the Legal Departments of RMT etcetera will be considering that avenue.It cause me concern about what other "corner cutting"  that the Company may potentially pursue with their "cheaper " crews.

    Remember the "Herald of Free Enterprise"?

    I will not be using P and O in the Future, due to my disgust at their treatment of their Workforce and my concerns about its potential as an indicator of the manner in which they may operate their vessels in the Future.

    You pay your money and take your choice and I choose to spend my money elsewhere from now on.

  • kenexton
    kenexton Forum Participant Posts: 306
    edited March 2022 #23

    I am struggling to understand how P and O will be able to justify their actions under ETO regulations on the face value of Press reports.No doubt the Unions concerned will be looking closely at this.

    I will not be using P and O again for sure.Firstly because of the above and secondly because I would have safety concerns about sailing on their vessels in the Future.

    If they can "cut corners" on adherence to Employment Law

  • kenexton
    kenexton Forum Participant Posts: 306
    edited March 2022 #24

    Apologies to CT members for dual posting.Something froze on my tablet mid typing.Anyway you get the gist of my views on this serious issue and of my response to it.

  • mbee1
    mbee1 Club Member Posts: 557
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    edited March 2022 #25

    Reading today that French, Dutch and Irish crews have not been made redundant because, since leaving the EU, we no longer have to stick to EU law.  It's also interesting that the Government did not back Labour when they wanted to outlaw "fire and rehire".

    P&O also seem to have broken employment law as they made more than 25 staff redundant so there should have been a consultation period with the unions.

    I notice Farage has been spouting about British jobs.  Well this wouldn't have happened had we not left the EU!

    I, for one, will not be using P&O again.

  • JVB66
    JVB66 Forum Participant Posts: 22,892
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    edited March 2022 #26

    HMG could always take control of the cross channel routes and the PandO shipssurprised

  • GTrimmer
    GTrimmer Club Member Posts: 169
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    edited March 2022 #27

    In news that will no doubt shock absolutely nobody, the current CEO of POFerries P&O Ferries was previously an executive at........

    Serco. The Tories' favourite consultancy.

    The replacement P&O staff won't have pilotage exemption tickets. Does Dover have enough pilots to cope?

  • moulesy
    moulesy Forum Participant Trusted Posts: 9,412
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    edited March 2022 #29

    And, according to news reports the government are snuggled up in bed with the parent company, heavily invested in one of their flagship Brexit policies of "freeports".

    The words "chicken" and "roost" spring to mind. yell

  • Frank Gill
    Frank Gill Club Member Posts: 155
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    edited March 2022 #30

    Give it a couple of months and somebody will be posting they have just got a really good deal through P&O.

  • Unknown
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    edited March 2022 #31
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