P&O Ferries boss ‘deeply sorry’ for replacing staff with foreign workers

Mr Hebblethwaite told MPs that he had considered refusing a £183,000 bonus following the sacking of nearly 800 staff – House of Commons/PA

The boss of P&O Ferries has said he is deeply sorry for sacking hundreds of British seafarers and replacing them with cheaper overseas workers on £4.87 an hour.

Peter Hebblethwaite, chief executive, said the decision to dismiss the seafarers in 2022, while “legal,” was “one that I wish we had never had to make in the first place”.

Without it, P&O would not have survived, he maintained, though the company would not repeat its actions in the future.

Mr Hebblethwaite said: “I regret it and I am deeply sorry for the impact it had on 786 seafarers and their families. Let me be absolutely clear: we would not make that decision again.”

P&O came under fire after sacking almost 800 seafarers in March 2022 and replacing them with agency staff without carrying out a consultation.

Speaking in front of MPs on the business and trade committee, Mr Hebblethwaite said on Tuesday he considered refusing a £183,000 bonus following the dismissals, before opting to take it anyway.

He said: “I reflected on accepting that payment, but ultimately I did decide to accept it. I do recognise that is not a decision that everybody would have made.”

Mr Hebblethwaite said P&O will comply with new French legislation requiring it to pay crews at least £9.95 an hour, compared with a basic rate of £2.86 now, or £4.87 with add-ons, and to adopt a two weeks on, two off shift pattern. The rules were introduced by France last month with a three-month grace period.

The UK will introduce similar rules from June which require ferry workers to be paid the minimum wage in UK waters, regardless of the flag carrier.

P&O has not made clear how it intends to cope with the increased wage costs – Dan Kitwood/Getty Images Europe

However, the cross-Channel ferry firm is unlikely to be able to keep existing workers on at the new rate, since many are now flown in from India, Malaysia and the Philippines, with some working 12-hour shifts, seven days a week for up to 17 weeks at a time.

Currently, foreign workers have almost zero outlay once aboard ship and are able to send their wages home to their families.

Mr Hebblethwaite said: “The crewing agent is working with them to see how we can make it possible for as many of them to stay as possible.”

Liam Byrne, a Labour MP and chairman of the committee, raised the possibility of ferries being ordered into port on safety grounds while replacement crew are trained up, something that happened after the initial dismissals in 2022.

P&O has not made clear how it intends to cope with the increased wage costs, having said in 2022 that similar levels of pay had pushed it close to collapse.

Mr Hebblethwaite said that the new minimum wage requirements will apply equally to P&O’s competitors, which will help his company cope with the changes.

He said: “The changes to both the UK and the French law maintain a level playing field and therefore we are operating within the same bounds as our competitors.”

A P&O spokesman added that it will continue to recruit from international labour markets and offer a package appealing to qualified seafarers “from the UK, EU and around the world”.

Many crew members, including those in safety critical roles, already work a two weeks on, two off pattern, he said.

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