Redundancies at MH Bland

In particular, the Cable Car and Calypso Tours Ltd are entirely dependent on tourism from across the frontier and cruise liners. They now require to adapt their operations as a result of the reduced number of tourists that Gibraltar can expect to see in these extraordinary times during, and post, the Covid-19 pandemic.

In a statement issued today, George Gaggero, Director of MH Bland expressed his enormous regret at having to notify staff of the need to restructure and of the possibility of redundancies.

“We cannot thank HMGoG enough for the support they have given these families through the BEAT programme, and we will do everything possible to seek viable alternatives for staff, but the harsh reality is that the extended duration of the required closure due to Covid-19, and the inevitable downturn of tourism, has left us with no alternative but to seek to restructure our Tourism Division”.

“It will come as little surprise to anyone that Covid-19 has had a massive impact across all sectors of the international tourism industry, and, unfortunately, it stands to reason that Gibraltar and the Cable Car will not be left unscathed. Nevertheless, we will make every attempt to relocate staff to other positions within the MH Bland Group and to consider incentives to those who may wish to avail themselves of voluntary redundancy packages”.

“MH Bland has its roots firmly placed in Gibraltar for over 200 years and our staff have been part of our wider family. It is, therefore, particularly hard for my brother and I to feel it necessary to take these steps”.

Mr Gaggero added, “While we are obviously going to have to endure difficult times in the short term, we firmly believe that, in time, Gibraltar and MH Bland will rebound and come back stronger”.

02-07-2020 PANORAMAdailyGIBRALTAR