NEWS


The travel sector has relied heavily on the government’s furlough scheme, which ends this week


Late sales soften furlough’s end but trade fears job losses


Juliet Dennis


Improved trading and negotiations with staff and landlords are easing the plight of travel firms as furlough ends but further job losses are still likely, according to the trade. The government’s


Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme was due to end this week despite repeated calls for an extension for travel. An Advantage Travel


Leisure director Kelly Cookes


called the results “reassuring”, demonstrating members had “thought about this in advance and had the right conversations”. She said: “The level of members


STORY TOP


Partnership survey from September 13-26, during which changes to international travel restrictions were announced, found most members saw the end of furlough as their “biggest challenge” but a majority had staved off redundancies. More than one in 10 (12%)


said they would be forced to make redundancies, 57% had agreed temporary reduced hours or pay for their staff and 31% were returning staff to normal hours from October 1.


travelweekly.co.uk


saying they will need to make redundancies is less than we anticipated a few weeks ago. This is being helped by the improvement in trading, particularly late business, which is helping cashflow.” The trade has relied more


heavily on furlough than other sectors. HMRC data based on an ONS survey showed 28,900 operator and agency staff on furlough for the three months ending June 30. Abta’s September survey showed 69% of firms with furloughed staff expected to make further job cuts. Abta chief executive Mark Tanzer


said the industry had to “keep up the pressure” on government for grants. “We’re keen there should be no


further job losses,” he said. The Specialist Travel Association


(Aito) executive director Martyn Sumners warned specialists would struggle. He said: “With the end of the furlough scheme…there will be more redundancies.” Aito agency Oasis Travel managing


director Sandra Corkin said the next few months would be “tough”. She has negotiated rent reductions for most shops, but salary costs for almost 50 staff are back to 90% of pre-pandemic levels. “Late sales have helped provide commission to pay salaries,” she said. Agencies including Polka Dot


Travel, Spear Travels and Premier Travel are planning to recruit. Mark Johnson, director of Polka Dot Travel, which made redundancies early in the crisis, said the agency did not have enough staff to open all branches, adding: “Business is now enough to warrant us making recruitment a priority.” Spear Travels chairman Peter


Cookson warned of a “brain drain” if more employees left the industry. All branches will be open and staff will return from October 1. He said: “It’s hard to find staff in some areas.” Premier Travel director Paul


Waters said increased demand had allowed a return to full pay and hours from October 1 and plans to advertise for staff. Sister operator Premier Holidays is also recruiting but sales and marketing director Debbie Goffin acknowledged the end of furlough created “a complex picture” for different travel businesses. Elegant Resorts managing


director Lisa Fitzell said “very good people” had been lost to other sectors and urged the industry to inspire young people to take up jobs in travel. C&M Recruitment said it was


“exploding with vacancies”. But director Barbara Kolosinska warned: “If companies don’t offer good conditions, such as hybrid working or development plans, staff will leave.”


30 SEPTEMBER 2021 5


PICTURE: Shutterstock/Novikov Aleksey


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