Tourism Holdings increases investment in Australian business and rewards staff

25/02/10

Tourism Holdings Ltd is tripling its investment in fleet and facilities for its Australian rentals business during the 2010 calendar year – from the original budget of A$13M to A$40M, a media release from the company released yesterday says.

 

The investment will enable the production of more than 560 vehicles, which will all be on the road before the end of the calendar year.

 

Chief executive officer, Grant Webster, said the investment reflected both the great work the thl crew has done to position the Australian business for growth and the company’s confidence in the Australian economy into the future.

 

The campervans will be manufactured in the company’s New Zealand manufacturing business, Ci Munro, and within Australia. The mix of product between larger and smaller vehicles will be the largest determinant of where the fleet will be produced.

 

“We have a new range of motorhomes for our Maui brand being launched this year and the increase in investment will allow this new-style fleet to enter operation much earlier than originally expected,” Webster said.

 

“The Britz business will also benefit with a new product launch and dedicated new fleet. Our customers will definitely see a real benefit from this investment.”

 

Webster said the opportunity had also been taken to ensure that the timing of the investment maximised the last stage of the Australian stimulus package tax investment allowance for capital expenditure commitments, which expired on 31 December 2009.

 

“The Australian government stimulus package has been a catalyst for us having additional confidence in making this investment at this time, when world tourism is still in recovery mode.” 

thl makes staff payment after improvement in trading results  

thl also announced yesterdat that it will make a one-off staff payment equivalent to 1.5 percent of each employee’s annual wages or salary.The payment, to be made in early March, will coincide with the lifting of a wage and salary freeze across the group.

 

Webster, said the payment was to be made as a matter of fairness and to maintain good faith with staff and union negotiators, following a more rapid than expected improvement in the group’s financial performance.

 

“When the wage freeze was announced last year and agreements were reached with union negotiators it was based on our expectation that the group would not be profitable in the current financial year, and no dividends would be paid to shareholders. Data to that effect were shared in confidence with union negotiators.

 

“In the event, the group has performed better than expected, earning a small profit and declaring a modest dividend. We believe a one-off payment to the staff is appropriate to uphold the integrity of the agreements negotiated last year.”

 

Webster said the 1.5 percent payment was close to the official Labour Cost Index for the relevant period and a fair reflection of what staff had forgone due to the wage freeze. The payment will apply to virtually all the group’s 700 staff, with the exceptions being those whose employment agreements (which were negotiated prior to the start of the wage freeze in July 2009) included a wage increase during the 09/10 year.

 

Webster cautioned that the payment should not be regarded as establishing new benchmark levels for future wage movements, or as an indicator of substantial profit growth. “We remain a long way off the required level of financial performance, and tourism markets remain difficult and highly competitive,” he said.