‘Rocking the boat’: the disgrace of P&O Ferries
Stern action is needed to counter companies who believe breaking the law is justifiable
“What does a chief executive have to do to get fired these days,” asked Oliver Shah in The Sunday Times. Peter Hebblethwaite, boss of P&O Ferries, appears to be doing “his damnedest”. He finally admitted before a committee of MPs last week that the company had been legally required to consult unions before laying off 800 seafarers – but “chose not to do so”, and would do the same again. No union, he said by way of justification, could “possibly accept” those mass redundancies. For most corporate leaders, such blatant flouting of the law would be “terminal”. But Hebblethwaite apparently continues to enjoy the support of P&O’s Dubai parent company DP World. And why not? So long as he remains “a convenient human sponge, soaking up outrage”, he remains useful. After that, he too will be tossed aside. If you want to see who’s really responsible, look beyond P&O’s “captain calamity” to his “overlord”, Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem.
Hebblethwaite claimed that P&O Ferries wouldn’t be viable unless it replaced its UK crew with foreign agency workers paid as little as £5.15 an hour, said Nils Pratley in The Guardian. No doubt he’s correct about the millions P&O has lost amid the pandemic and energy crisis. But this was a “brazen attempt” to claim that protecting a wealthy parent company’s investment was “more important than staying within the law”. Seafarers, meanwhile, have found an “unlikely ally”, said Oliver Gill in The Daily Telegraph. Transport Secretary Grant Shapps not only wants the 800 P&O workers reinstated; he is also determined “to ram through changes that force all ferry operators to pay the minimum wage”, of over £9.50 an hour from April. This would close an employment law loophole that ferry operators have been exploiting for years by being registered abroad.
If nothing else, the P&O debacle has made clear that the law needed an overhaul, said Sarah O’Connor in the FT. The sackings have “given the lie to the narrative” that Britain was “taking back control” after Brexit to create “a high-wage economy” where workers aren’t undercut by low-paid migrants. If Shapps gets his way, “fares will certainly rise”, said Alistair Osborne in The Times. “But there are safety risks in having ships crewed by underpaid staff.” Hebblethwaite has apparently given “a two-fingered salute” to the minister’s demand that P&O’s workers are reinstated. In which case, why not revoke its operating licence? Or threaten the millions in tax breaks that DP World will receive for operating two proposed freeports in London and Southampton. Unless P&O “stops rocking the boat”, ministers should “kick it off” the plan.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Is Daylight Saving Time good for the climate?
Under the Radar Scientists are split over the potential environmental benefits of the hotly contested time change
By Abby Wilson Published
-
Life in the post-truth era
Opinion The mainstream media can't hold back a tsunami of misinformation
By Theunis Bates Published
-
Magazine printables - November 8, 2024
Puzzles and Quizzes Issue - November 8, 2024
By The Week US Published
-
The World Bank and the IMF: still fit for purpose?
In the Spotlight Washington meeting has renewed focus on whether 80-year-old Bretton Woods 'twin' institutions are able to tackle the challenges of the future
By The Week UK Published
-
Post Office: still-troubled horizons
Talking Point Sub-postmasters continue to report issues with Horizon IT system behind 'one of the worst miscarriages of justice in British legal history'
By The Week UK Published
-
The UK's national debt: a terrifying warning
Talking Points OBR's 'grim' report on Britain's fiscal outlook warns of skyrocketing spending, but 'projection' is not a 'forecast'
By The Week Published
-
Copper coins: are they doomed?
Talking Point Treasury says no new 1ps and 2ps needed due to declining use – but would we really miss them?
By The Week UK Published
-
Shein: could the year’s mega-IPO fall apart at the seams?
Talking Point Latest hitch is a pre-float 'security review' that could deter potential investors
By The Week UK Published
-
Labor market strong as inflation sinks
Feature And more of the week's best financial insight
By The Week US Published
-
Midair blowout: another black mark for Boeing
Feature This isn't the first production issue Boeing has encountered
By The Week US Published
-
Behemoths of the seas
The Explainer Cruise liners keep getting bigger, with the world’s largest 'megaship' ever built set to make its maiden voyage this month.
By The Week Staff Published