Couple 'marched off P&O ship like criminals' after 31 years of combined service

A couple dismissed by P&O after 31 years of combined service have described how they were marched off a ship “like criminals” when the company summarily sacked more than 800 workers.

The pair, who worked alternate weeks on the company’s cross-Channel routes out of Dover to share childcare of their son, are now considering their response to redundancy terms served without notice on Thursday morning.

Speaking to Sky News anonymously because the couple fear repercussions from P&O’s lawyers for commenting, the male partner said: “The way they came on board and locked us out of everything literally made us feel like criminals.

“Once we then got the announcement [of redundancy] everyone was devastated, and we were just told ‘go to your cabin, get your belongings and get off the ship, take an envelope on your way off’, and that was it.”

He said the dismissal left them unclear how they will pay their mortgage or support their son.

“Yesterday morning I woke up to a job, absolutely normal, this morning we’re completely unemployed.

“We’re both together, we’ve got a mortgage, a child at home, we just bought a house last year and have just done it up.”

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‘I don’t know what I will do with my skills’

His partner said she had no idea what she will do if the redundancies are not reversed.

“I’ve worked for them for 17 years, I don’t know what I will do with my skills. Working on board a ship is completely different to working on land, I’m not sure what I can do.”

Asked if he felt they had any choice but to accept the redundancy terms he said: “No. We’ll have to sign.”

P&O says it have offered staff “enhanced compensation” because of the highly unusual and contrasted decision not to consult with workers before making them redundant.

In redundancy offers couriered to staff today and seen by Sky News, P&O offers staff two-and-a-half weeks pay for every year of service with the company, pay to cover three-months notice pay and an additional 13 weeks wages to cover “the lack of advance notice”.

P&O breached employment law, claim unions

Unions including the RMT say P&O is in clear breach of employment law, which requires companies to consult with employees as part of a redundancy process.

They also argue that the roles are not being made redundant as the company plans to replace its employees with agency staff.

In a letter to staff, P&O Ferries chief executive Paul Hebblethwaite said the move would cut crewing costs by 50% and help secure the business, which the company says required a £100m bailout from parent company DP World last year.

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Both P&O Ferries and DP World have declined requests to make executives available for interview.

‘Company was in very poor financial situation’

DP World director and former P&O chairman Robert Woods, who resigned from the post in December, told Sky News the redundancies were regrettable.

“I don’t like it at all but that’s life isn’t it,” he said. “The company was in a very poor financial situation and it had to do this to save the ship.”

When asked the 800 workers who lost their jobs, he said: “It is simply dreadful.”

In a sign of the how completely the announcement wrong-footed ministers, both Transport Secretary Grant Shapps and Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng wrote strongly worded letters to P&O on Friday, but both incorrectly addressed them to Mr Woods as chairman.

Downing Street confirmed that P&O informed the Department of Transport on Wednesday evening that it was making the redundancies as part of what it told ministers was a “corporate restructuring”.

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