Disgruntled workers of UK ferry operator P&O Ferries have shared the video in which a company executive announced the sacking of 800 workers over Zoom.
The un-named executive – who is not the CEO of P&O Ferries – apologises for his "stilted style" but said a scripted video was needed to ensure that all employees received the same information at the same time.
Citing losses of 100 million pounds ($178 million) annually, the ferries boss said all workers would be replaced by a third-party crew.
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"The company has made the decision that its vessels going forward will be primarily crewed by a third-party crew provider," he says.
"Therefore I am sorry to inform you that this means your employment is terminated with immediate effect on the grounds of redundancy.
"Your final day of employment is today."
The announcement prompted onboard demonstrations among workers, some of whom were reported to have locked themselves onboard vessels in protest.
Others reported seeing bus loads of agency workers arrive at the docks to take the positions of the sacked workers.
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While P&O Ferries carries more than 10 million passengers and millions of tonnes of freight between the UK and Europe each year, it is owned by Dubai-based logistics group DP World.
In a statement released to the public, P&O Ferries said it was doing this to provide "better service to customers" and warned of short-term delays.
"P&O Ferries have today announced a programme of work to become a more competitive and efficient operator, providing a better service to our customers across the tourism and freight industries," a statement on the operator's website reads.
"While we enact these changes, there will be significant disruption across P&O Ferries services over the next few days, however we are working to minimise the impact on your journey."
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Rustom Tata, an employer lawyer and chairman of law firm DMH Stallard, said that it looked like P&O Ferries was trying to avoid renegotiating pay with its workers and replace them with agency staff.
"For those staff who have been, or are about to be dismissed, they will certainly have claims for unfair dismissal," Tata said.
"One has to question the extent to which the integrity of the P&O brand will be impacted not only by the fact of redundancies, but also by the apparently wholly planned approach being taken to such a large proportion of its workforce ignoring some of the basic fundamentals of employee relations."
Additional reporting by CNN
