He had not even decided on the amount of his pay: Peter Fankhauser, head of the insolvent travel group Thomas Cook, has expressed himself at a hearing in the British Parliament to criticize his bonus payments. Apart from a salary of 1.02 million pounds Fankhauser last received a bonus of £ 750,000 in 2017 - about 30 percent of them in stocks that are now worthless, said Fankhauser. He would think about a return of the sum, but initially did not want to make a decision.
Previously, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson had criticized the travel company's managers for having received millions in bonuses in recent years. "I will not try to defend my base salary," Fankhauser said, "because that's an enormous amount relative to the base salary of a normal worker." He fully understands the mood in the public.
Following the bankruptcy of the British travel group Thomas Cook, the German subsidiary also had to file for bankruptcy at the end of September. Its members include the brands Neckermann, Öger Tours and Bucher Reisen. Thanks to a rescue loan of 380 million euros granted by the federal government and Hesse, the holiday plane Condor can find new investors.
He fought "tirelessly" for the success of his company, Fankhauser said on the circumstances of the bankruptcy. The bankruptcy is not all his fault: "I would like to repeat how sorry we are that we could not save this emblematic brand and company with such a long history."