Chief executive Peter Hebblethwaite has appeared before UK Members of Parliament (MPs) to defend P&O Ferries’ sacking of nearly 800 seafarers without notice.
Labour MP Darren Jones, chair of the House of Commons Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy Committee, asked the executive on Thursday if P&O was in a mess because Hebblethwaite did not know what he was doing.
“Or are you just a shameless criminal?” he added.
The chief executive reiterated the message that the company was losing “an unsustainable amount of money” and would have had to close if it had not acted.
He disputed claims that P&O had breached its obligations to give enough notice of the redundancies to the flag states where the vessels are registered.
Hebblethwaite was also quizzed about his salary, saying he earns £325,000 ($429,000) per year.
The boss said cheaper agency seafarers replacing the old crews are being paid £5.15 per hour.
He declined to answer whether he could survive on this amount.
Hebblethwaite was then asked whether, if anyone was mad enough to offer him a performance-related bonus, he would take it.
He said he could not answer the question and had not considered this.
No pressure from the parent
Hebblethwaite also denied that Dubai parent company DP World was involved in the sacking decision.
He told the committee it was a P&O Ferries board decision and was not forced on the UK operation by DP.
Hebblethwaite acknowledged that the company had foreseen that the move would be “very difficult, very controversial”, and he said ferry bookings have fallen as a result, particularly on the Dover-Calais route.
He also admitted there was no consultation with workers: “It was our assessment that the change was of such magnitude that no union could accept our proposals.”
RMT union general secretary Mick Lynch responded to Hebblethwaite’s evidence by urging him to resign.
“We are calling for the government to issue an immediate injunction to prevent the ships sailing and reinstate the sacked workers,” he said.
“We are also calling for the immediate disqualification of Peter Hebblethwaite as a director after he admitted the company broke the law and would do it again.”
