David Moore, who was an aircraft engineer with Thomas Cook for 11 years, is one such worker. He told the Channel 4 documentary ‘Thomas Cook: The Rise & Fall of Britain’s Oldest Travel Agent’ that he has not only lost his job, but much of his previous work has gone unpaid. Mr Moore explained that he is owed “near enough double” what he has actually received.
He added that this is because taxpayers are now fitting the bill, so the Government’s compensation is capped.
Reflecting on his lost earnings, the father-of-two said: “I’m never going to see it because the company’s in insolvency.
“So we just have to suck it up and take it.”
He recalled the day he was told he had been made redundant without pay and he came home to be greeted by his young son, Bobby.
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He said: “He hadn’t got a care in the world and when I looked at him it was just the realisation of everything’s happening around him and he had no idea.
“That’s when I kind of broke down. Just sat here and broke down.”
Mr Moore is now facing the prospect of having to find work away from his young family.
There are hundreds if not thousands of people up and down the country in the same position, after payday came and went without wages entering bank accounts.
It has also had to fit the huge bill of refunding customers who had future bookings with the firm and paying for redundancy and back pay to workers in Mr Moore’s position.
As of October 3, around £18million had already been paid to staff, according to the Transport Salaried Staffs Association union, by the Insolvency Service.
However, it has been estimated that taxpayers may have to shell out £60million to fund the unpaid wages and reduncies of Thomas Cook employees left in the lurch.
Nevertheless, workers are concerned they may have to wait months for their full amount with such a huge volume of claims forms needing to be processed.
Meanwhile, Thomas Cook bosses are facing demands to pay their huge bonuses to workers left jobless by the crash.
Chief Executive Peter Fankhauser took a bonus of £750,000 in 2017, two thirds in cash and one third in shares, a cross-party committee of MPs heard two days ago.
He said he was deeply sorry to hard-working employees now without work but was told his apology “rings rather hollow” unless he is willing to “put something back”.
Labour MP Rachel Reeves, who chairs the committee, said his bonus money could be “put to better purpose” such as paying back pay or refunding taxpayers.
